Smartphone Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) Black (SM-A520F) - Reviews. Review of the smartphone Samsung Galaxy S5: a serial killer

Information about the make, model, and alternative names of a particular device, if any.

Design

Information about the dimensions and weight of the device, presented in different units of measurement. Used materials, suggested colors, certificates.

SIM card

The SIM card is used in mobile devices to store data that certifies the authenticity of mobile service subscribers.

Mobile networks

A mobile network is a radio system that allows multiple mobile devices to communicate with each other.

Mobile technologies and data rates

Communication between devices in mobile networks is carried out through technologies that provide different data transfer rates.

Operating system

The operating system is the system software that manages and coordinates the operation of the hardware components in the device.

SoC (System on a Chip)

System on a chip (SoC) includes all the most important hardware components of a mobile device in one chip.

Built-in memory

Each mobile device has a built-in (non-removable) memory with a fixed amount.

Memory cards

Memory cards are used in mobile devices to increase the storage capacity for storing data.

Screen

The screen of a mobile device is characterized by its technology, resolution, pixel density, diagonal length, color depth, etc.

Sensors

Different sensors perform different quantitative measurements and convert physical indicators into signals that are recognized by the mobile device.

rear camera

The main camera of a mobile device is usually located on its rear panel and can be combined with one or more additional cameras.

Front-camera

Smartphones have one or more front cameras of various designs - a pop-up camera, a PTZ camera, a cutout or hole in the display, a camera under the display.

Audio

Information about the type of speakers and audio technologies supported by the device.

Radio

The radio of the mobile device is a built-in FM receiver.

Location determination

Information about navigation and location technologies supported by the device.

WiFi

Wi-Fi is a technology that provides wireless communication for short distance data transmission between different devices.

Bluetooth

Bluetooth is a standard for secure wireless data transfer between different types of devices over short distances.

USB

USB (Universal Serial Bus) is an industry standard that allows different electronic devices to communicate.

HDMI

HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) is a digital audio/video interface that replaces older analog audio/video standards.

Headphone jack

This is an audio connector, which is also called an audio jack. The most widely used standard in mobile devices is the 3.5mm headphone jack.

Connecting devices

Information about other important connection technologies supported by the device.

Browser

A web browser is a software application for accessing and viewing information on the Internet.

Audio file formats/codecs

Mobile devices support various audio file formats and codecs that store and encode/decode digital audio data, respectively.

Video file formats/codecs

Mobile devices support various video file formats and codecs, which store and encode/decode digital video data, respectively.

Battery

Mobile device batteries differ from each other in their capacity and technology. They provide the electrical charge they need to function.

Specific Absorption Rate (SAR)

SAR levels refer to the amount of electromagnetic radiation absorbed by the human body while using a mobile device.

The market has not felt a shortage in the niche of mobile devices for several years. Every year, manufacturers offer customers different new products. A wide range can be observed in all price categories. However, some users still prefer smartphones, which, as they say, are time-tested. This review will describe just such a gadget of the famous Galaxy line. It was released by a Korean company with a worldwide reputation - Samsung. The price of the Galaxy S5, its specifications and, of course, reviews will be discussed in this article.

The model debuted successfully. In 2014, she was considered one of the best that were presented on the market. The manufacturer tried to implement everything necessary in it to meet the requirements of a wide audience of buyers. What came of it? Let's figure it out together.

Positioning

At the time of release, the Samsung Galaxy S5 model (read reviews below) belonged to the segment of flagship devices. This is fully confirmed by the characteristics that are considered relevant to this day. At the start of sales, the price of a smartphone ranged around $400, but with the release of new models, it gradually began to decline.

It is worth noting that for those buyers who do not want to get a novelty, this phone is an excellent choice, time-tested. The device has a sufficient level of performance to cope with any tasks. However, we will not get ahead of ourselves, but in order we will get acquainted with all the characteristics.

Equipment

Although this model is not a “state employee”, however, according to the set of components, the smartphone can hardly be classified as a flagship. All that is offered to the buyer is a USB cable, documentation and charging. Many users would very much like to see a case for the Samsung Galaxy S5 in the box. But alas, it, like a film for the screen, as well as a memory card, will have to be purchased separately. Headphones, unfortunately, are also missing, so we can safely say that the manufacturer saved a lot by refusing accessories.

Appearance

The first impressions of buyers when examining this smartphone are positive. Even despite the plastic case, a feeling of reliability is created. And this is fully justified, since the manufacturer used high-quality materials. The shape of the phone is closer to a rectangle. The corners are slightly rounded, which undoubtedly adds to the attractiveness. An excellent addition was the chrome frame running around the entire perimeter of the case. It looks majestic and favorably highlights the front panel of the phone. The control panel is standard. A fingerprint scanner is hidden in the mechanical key. The name of the company flaunts above the screen. There is a “peephole” of the selfie camera, a sensor, and an earpiece.

The back panel looks pretty impressive. Not the last role in this was played by corrugated coating. It is worth noting that it is used not only for beauty, but also for practical purposes. For example, dirt does not accumulate on the rear panel, so you can not buy a case for the Samsung Galaxy S5. After all, many people have to wear it just to get rid of the stained surface, and in this phone such a need disappears by itself. On the back side, the buyer will be able to see a small speaker hole, which is located at the bottom. A large “window” of the main camera is displayed at the top in the middle. Under it there is a flash and a sensor that measures the heartbeat.

The back cover is very easy to remove. The battery is hidden underneath. For the Samsung Galaxy S5, the developers have chosen an interesting arrangement of slots into which an external drive and a SIM card are installed. At a cursory examination, it may seem that he is alone. But this is not so - the cards are inserted on both sides, so to speak, with a “sandwich” (there is a drive below, and a “SIM card” above it).

In addition to all the usual elements, this smartphone has an infrared port, thanks to which the device can easily replace the remote control. For charging, a USB 3.0 connector is provided, covered with a chrome plug.

Screen

Most buyers when choosing a smartphone pays special attention to the capabilities of the screen. And, in principle, this is correct. After all, interaction with the gadget occurs through this particular element. Were Samsung Galaxy S5 buyers disappointed by the screen specs? If you believe the reviews, then no. An excellent large display with a 5.1-inch diagonal works with a resolution of 1920 × 1080 px. The matrix is ​​made in accordance with SuperAMOLED technology, which is undoubtedly an advantage. This company is distinguished by the fact that it equips its products with high-quality screens. S5 is no exception. The high pixel density (431 ppi) guarantees a high-quality and clear image, on which, even armed with a magnifying glass, it is impossible to see pixelation. The developers did not forget about protection either by installing high-quality Gorilla Glass 3 glass.

Viewing angles and color are simply gorgeous. The picture is displayed richly and juicy. Even in direct sunlight, the information is perfectly readable, and the contrast remains practically unchanged.

Protection standard

It is worth noting that the characteristics of the Samsung Galaxy S5 even now are quite consistent with modern requirements. Many buyers were pleased with the fact that the manufacturer used IP67 protection. What does this mean? The device is not afraid of getting wet. According to the international standard, the phone perfectly tolerates immersion in water to a depth of one meter. The maximum time spent in it should not exceed 30 minutes. Users recommend that after immersion in water, be sure to wipe the screen and the places where the connectors are located with a dry soft cloth. Also, owners may not be afraid that getting caught in heavy rain, their phone will stop working. This is confirmed by numerous reviews of the Samsung Galaxy S5.

Thanks to special protection, this smartphone does not need to be cleaned of dust and other small debris. For example, after falling into the sand, it is enough to simply clean the upper surfaces of contamination.

According to the manufacturer, in a device immersed in water, the camera works perfectly. If there is a desire, the user can take unique pictures of the underwater world, but do not forget about the limitations in depth and time.

Performance

Smartphone Samsung Galaxy S5 is not in vain equated to the flagship devices. Its hardware can compete with expensive devices. To ensure high performance, the phone has an excellent Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor. Produced using a 28-nm process technology. It works on four computing modules, which are developed on the basis of the Krait 400 architecture. The maximum clock frequency is 2500 MHz. The only drawback is the row system, limited to 32 bits. For such hardware, 64-bit applications are not available. The user will experience problems only when installing new software, but otherwise the platform works fine. We can safely say that there is not a single task with which the device would not cope.

To work with graphic images, the developers installed the Adreno 330 coprocessor. This model is great for working with a screen with Full HD resolution. Most games run smoothly, and the user can choose high graphics settings.

Memory

The capabilities of the gadget are also characterized by RAM. Performance will directly depend on its volume. In this model, the developers used two gigabytes. However, it should be borne in mind that about half is already used by system processes, so in fact users are left with only one gigabyte.

Unfortunately, with the size of the built-in storage, not everything is so rosy in the Samsung Galaxy S5 16Gb. From the name it is already clear that its volume is limited to 16 GB. The pre-installed software takes up about 5 GB, so only 11 is left for installing applications. Is this enough? Each owner will decide for himself. For those who need additional memory, the option to install an external drive is offered. The device supports flash drives up to 128 GB. They have a separate slot.

Platform

This smartphone is under the control of the fourth "Android". The original Samsung Galaxy S5 firmware has a proprietary TouchWiz interface. The developers did a good job on the shell. They changed the design and made the interface as clear as possible. Updates touched the settings menu and some applications.

With the advent of the fifth version of the operating system, owners of this model are invited to update their gadget. To do this, simply connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi and activate the corresponding menu item.

The phone has a lot of pre-installed software. It includes popular services from Google, social networks, weather, office programs, players, and more.

cameras

The Samsung Galaxy S5 phone meets the requirements of the most advanced users. In order to verify this, just look at the characteristics of the main camera. The manufacturer did not stint and installed a 16-megapixel matrix. But this is not only the advantage of optics. It was in this model that the developers implemented a completely new auto focus system. Simply aim the viewfinder and press the shutter button to get a good picture. In any light, bright and clear shots can be taken by the Samsung Galaxy S5, reviews confirm this. There are many settings in the menu that are manually adjusted. The flash does a great job. Videos are recorded in high definition 4K UHD. With this quality, the maximum frame rate is limited to 30th. You can increase the speed to 60 fps by changing the resolution to 1080p.

What do owners say about the front camera? Unfortunately, it cannot boast of flagship capabilities. It is based on a sensitive sensor with a resolution of 2 megapixels. From these characteristics it is already clear that it is pointless to dream of a high-quality selfie. The only thing this module is suitable for is video communication.

Battery specifications

When choosing a phone, an obligatory criterion is the autonomy period. It is provided not only by the battery, but also by the energy efficiency of the hardware platform. To begin with, consider which battery developers have chosen for the Samsung Galaxy S5? Removable type battery, made by lithium-ion technology. Has a capacity of 2800 mAh. In comparison with its predecessor, this model shows better results. To complete the picture, you need to consider a large high-resolution touch screen and a fairly powerful hardware platform. With all this, the Galaxy S5 is able to work at an average load for about a day.

It is worth paying attention to the power saving mode. The device implements the Ultra Power Saving function, with which you can significantly extend the "life" of the smartphone on a single charge. When it is activated, the color of the image is turned off, and the multifunctional device turns into a simple “dialer”. In this condition, as the manufacturer assures, the phone consumes no more than 10% in 24 hours.

Samsung Galaxy S5 reviews

To assess the real capabilities of the gadget, it is not enough to know only the technical characteristics. In this matter, you should also listen to customer reviews. The comments not only talk about the positive aspects of the smartphone, but also discuss in detail the negative ones. Most of all complaints were caused by the volume of ROM. Currently, advanced users do not have enough memory of 16 GB in order to fully use the potential of the gadget. And if you consider that not the entire volume will be available, then hardly anyone can do without external drives. The plastic case can also be attributed to the disadvantages, especially if you rely on current trends. Now even "state employees" are produced with an aluminum case, which significantly increases the level of reliability of the device.

In principle, the Samsung Galaxy S5 phone has no critical shortcomings. Users by and large in the reviews basically highlight only the strengths. What is the indisputable advantage of this gadget?

• The degree of protection of the case. With this model, the manufacturer has implemented the IP67 standard, so you can not be afraid that the phone will fail when wet.
• Convenient interface. Of course, it is impossible to call the fourth Android a fresh version, but the number of compatible office and entertainment applications is so large that the user will by no means experience restrictions. The most advanced are invited to change the firmware in the Samsung Galaxy S5 to a newer one.
• Resolution of the main camera. The device has a high-quality model, with which it is easy to get great pictures. Recall that you can do them even under water.
• Actual characteristics of the hardware platform. The equipment allows this model to be competitive even after two years.
• Decent battery life. During the day, the device operates at an average load. And if you activate the Ultra Power Saving mode, then the smartphone will very economically consume battery life, so that the operating time will increase significantly.

Samsung Galaxy S5 mini and Galaxy S5: main differences

For lovers of small smartphones, the manufacturer has released a smaller copy of the Galaxy S5. The appearance of the phones is practically the same, if you do not pay attention to the size. The dimensions of the device with the mini attachment are 131 × 65 × 9.1 mm. Let's compare them with the "older" version. As for the height and width, they have decreased in comparison with the Galaxy S5 by 11 mm and 8 mm, respectively. However, the thickness of the Samsung Galaxy S5 mini, no matter how strange it may sound, has increased by 1 mm. The differences don't end there. For some reason, the developers significantly underestimated the technical characteristics of the "younger" version. This is not the first time buyers have seen this trend. Let's look at the differences in detail.

Conclusion

The review shows that the manufacturer has done a good job on the Samsung Galaxy S5. The price of a smartphone with a flagship "stuffing" varies from 6500 to 10700 rubles. The device perfectly implements all the functions necessary for comfortable work. Surprisingly, even after three years from the moment of release, the technical characteristics of this model are still relevant today, so the purchase will be fully justified.

Detailed testing of one of the most anticipated smartphones of the new season

Of course, one of the most long-awaited and expected new products among mobile devices of the coming year is the next update of the flagship line of Samsung smartphones - Galaxy S5. The novelty does not need a special introduction - in recent years, the Korean company Samsung Electronics has managed not only to become scandalous due to countless litigations with the competing American Apple, but also to take one of the leading positions in the world market for the sale of tablets and, of course, , smartphones.

Left to right: Samsung Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy S5, Galaxy S4, Apple iPhone 5s

By the way, in recent years, Koreans have firmly accustomed users to the idea that Samsung always has two flagship smartphones on the market at the same time. They are representatives of two top product lines moving in parallel courses - Galaxy Note and Galaxy S. Not so long ago, another update of the tablet phone line happened - the Samsung Note 3 smartphone went on sale, about which we wrote so much in our time. Now it's the turn to update a series of smartphones with a more "civilized" design.

Samsung Galaxy S5 and Galaxy S4

Smartphones of the Galaxy S series have always been very different from their semi-tablet counterparts from the Note line precisely in size - they were rather elegant devices in size. However, with the release of the Galaxy S5, it must be admitted, the distance separating them is shrinking more and more. And not only the size of each next representative of the Galaxy S line is getting larger, but in the Note line they are consistently decreasing. The Galaxy Note 3 has become the smallest among its brothers, and the Galaxy S5, on the contrary, has gained such large dimensions that it’s time to think about it: what, in fact, is the difference between the modern representatives of the two lines? Their performance is absolutely the same, the design is similar, the price is the same, but we have already said about the dimensions. Does the whole difference now lie only in the presence or absence of an electronic pen?

Samsung Galaxy S5 and Galaxy Note 3

In any case, a special technological breakthrough from the new flagship of the Galaxy S line should not be expected. No new technological discoveries have yet been made, and everything that has been discovered has already been put into practice, and now they are finishing, finishing, polishing - improving functionality. And it's not just about Samsung devices - the whole market is now in anticipation of something new. This, by the way, is clearly seen in the example of the last two world IT exhibitions that took place at the beginning of the year in Las Vegas and Barcelona. The products of the Korean company are no exception: hardware and technically, the new flagship does not differ much from the previous one (Samsung Galaxy S4) - now the focus is on improving functionality. Ultra-fast data transfer capabilities, an updated camera control interface, a wide range of fitness apps, a heart rate monitor, a fingerprint scanner, and agreements with the world's leading content and service providers to pre-install a variety of applications with a long-term prepaid subscription - that's it. , which Samsung is currently working on. Gigabytes and gigahertz somehow suddenly faded into the background, which is probably for the better. Surprisingly, the Koreans did not even add RAM to their new flagship - the Galaxy S5 still has 2 GB of RAM, although the new product still has some changes in terms of hardware.

Key Features of Samsung Galaxy S5 (Model SM-G900F)

• SoC Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 (MSM8974AC), 4 cores Krait 400, 2.5 GHz
• GPU Adreno 330, 578 MHz
• Operating system Android 4.4.2 Kitkat
• Touchscreen display Super AMOLED, 5.1″, 1920×1080, 432 ppi
• Random access memory (RAM) 2 GB, internal memory 16 GB
• Support for microSD memory cards up to 128 GB
• 2G, 3G, 4G networks (LTE Cat.4, up to 150/50 Mbps)
• Bluetooth 4.0 BLE / ANT+
• USB 3.0, OTG, MHL
• Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac HT80, MIMO (2×2), Wi-Fi hotspot
• NFC, infrared
• GPS (A-GPS), Glonass
• Camera 16 MP, autofocus, LED flash, video UHD (4K) 30 fps
• Camera 2 MP (front)
• Accelerometer, gyroscope, distance sensor, compass, barometer, Hall sensor (magnetic field), ambient light, gestures (infrared), fingerprint scanner, heart rate sensor
• Dust and moisture protection according to IP67 standard
• Li-ion battery 2800 mAh
• Dimensions 142×72.5×8.1 mm
• Weight 145 g

Appearance and usability

As already mentioned, the new model of the Galaxy S series has become much larger in size than the previous one. It feels like in the hand, the smartphone has finally crossed that invisible line called “a little more, and it will be too much”: now the device has become really bulky and surprisingly heavy. For the breast pocket of a shirt, for example, this is now certainly an inaccessible guest, although, of course, people who have firmly decided to follow the path of life with a “shovel” at the ready will not feel anything unusual in the size of the new Galaxy S. Still, it is smaller than the Galaxy Note 3, although the difference is already minimal. Nevertheless, it is still not clear why it was necessary to make a new model so much larger than the previous one with almost identical screens. In the Galaxy S4, for example, the side frames are only 3 mm wide, while in the Galaxy S5 they suddenly grew to 4 mm, the same applies to the upper and lower parts of the frame - they also suddenly became much wider, although the screen itself is practically the same in size. has changed.

As for the appearance, here the developers clearly adhere to a single design line: metal and leather, leather and metal - they are now used in all mobile devices of the company (including numerous wearable gadgets). The only pity is that at the exorbitant prices at which the current flagships are sold, the company was greedy to provide real skin - maybe then these devices would look really stylish. But no, as in previous times, ordinary molded plastic is used here to create the appearance that the back wall of the smartphone is made of leather. Texturing on plastic differs from that of the Galaxy Note 3: a sort of pseudo-embossing was used here, as if a pattern of numerous dots was squeezed into the skin. It looks nice and fresh, at least better than the glossy plastic that has long adorned the surfaces of all the Galaxy S and Galaxy Note.

As for the metal, it is not here either: the shiny “chrome” bezel around the entire perimeter of the case (exactly the same as in previous models, only with a different pattern) is sprayed onto plastic, not real metal. This bezel, by the way, has also become much wider and even thicker, adding weight to the smartphone as a whole.

The surface of the rim is quite slippery - due to it, as well as due to the considerable mass, the device is quite inconvenient to lift from the surface of the table, since the fingers do not feel confident grip.

The back cover can be easily removed from the case and just as easy to put on - it is traditionally fastened on several plastic latches, there is a barely noticeable ledge for hooking with a fingernail. Under the cover are hidden slots for SIM-cards and memory cards, located "sandwich" one above the other.

Below, they arranged a compartment for a removable battery - it supports the cards, but the memory card can still be replaced “hot”. The device uses only one SIM card, Micro-SIM format, a microSD memory card can be used here up to 128 GB.

At the back of the smartphone there is a square window of the camera module, it is quite large in size, next to it is an LED flash. Below, in the recess, the eyes of the sensor for measuring the pulse are visible. The heart rate sensor camera is recessed into the body, and it also has its own backlight - a small LED element illuminates the vessels of the finger attached to the camera, while it counts heartbeats. Even lower is a hole for sound output from the ringing speaker with a twig slightly curved outward, and the silver chrome-plated company logo adorns all this.

The front panel has not undergone significant changes - it is a completely recognizable element of all Samsung mobile devices. It stands out, first of all, with its oblong mechanical key under the screen, which this time has received additional functionality. This button is also responsible for scanning the fingerprint - now no one can blame the Koreans for not having a golden smartphone with a fingerprint scanner. Unlike the iPhone scanner, here you can’t just put your finger on it: you need to swipe it along the key, and even at the right speed - if you hurry, you can fail. In this regard, the iPhone scanner looks preferable: not only do you not need to move your finger, but you can also put your finger on the button at any angle, which allows you to hold the device with any comfortable grip. In the case of the Samsung Galaxy S5 scanner, you will have to hold the device with one hand and swipe over the sensor with the other, which is very tiring, and most users will most likely simply disable this feature.

The touch buttons next to the mechanical ones have a bright white backlight with a customizable glow time, which is commendable. Above, above the screen, you can see a longitudinal slot in the protective glass for sound output from the earpiece, next to it, the eyes of the front camera and sensors are visible. There is also an alert LED that lights up in different colors depending on the charging status and incoming events - its functions can be configured: disabled or enabled individually.

There are two buttons on the side faces of the device: on the left - volume control, on the right - power and lock. The large metalized keys of all Samsung smartphones have a soft stroke and distinct pressing, they are excellent in the blind, and in general, in this regard, the products of the Korean company are one of the best on the market.

On the upper end, there is a headphone jack (3.5 mm) and a peephole of an infrared transmitter, which serves to control various equipment as a remote control, comfortably located one next to the other. Appropriate proprietary software called Smart Remote goes from model to model - of course, it is also available here. The functionality of the Smart Remote program is on top: it is not only able to connect a smartphone using an infrared port with any equipment, but can also act as an interactive guide.

At the bottom, the USB 3.0 connector is covered with a metallized cover with a rubber gasket - it protects the smartphone from dust and moisture getting inside. Yes, yes, the new flagship of the Galaxy S line has finally acquired dust and moisture protection according to the IP67 standard. In principle, the previous model also had it, but there it was a separate branch of the line called Galaxy Active. Protection in the Galaxy S5 is arranged in the same way as there: a rubber gasket was glued to the inner surface of the back cover, and the connectors are closed with special plugs. It's nice that every time you put on the back cover or remove the plug from the Micro-USB connector, the smartphone itself reminds you to close the protective covers (the reminder can be turned off).

And finally, about the most pleasant: now a new color has appeared in the arsenal of the Galaxy S line - golden. In addition to it, there are three more colors on sale that have already adorned Samsung's flagship devices (for example, Galaxy S3). By tradition, they were given romantic names: Jet Black (black), Sparkling White (white), Electric Blue (light blue) and Copper Gold (golden). For additional jewelry, in particular, a keychain or strap, no fasteners are provided.

Screen

The Samsung Galaxy S5 smartphone is equipped with a Super AMOLED touch matrix. The screen dimensions are 63 × 113 mm, the diagonal is 5.1 inches, the resolution is 1920 × 1080 pixels. Such a parameter as the density of pixels per inch is 432 ppi here - the dot density is very high.

Outside, the screen is covered with protective glass. The thickness of the side frames from the edge of the screen to the edge of the case is about 4 mm, the frames are not very narrow, they were smaller in the previous model.

The brightness of the display can be adjusted manually, or you can use automatic adjustment. Multi-touch technology here allows you to handle up to 10 simultaneous touches. The screen can be controlled by gloved hands, while it becomes more sensitive to any touch, so the settings left the option to disable this feature. The smartphone also has a proximity sensor that blocks the screen when you bring the smartphone to your ear.

A detailed examination using measuring instruments was carried out by the editor of the "Monitors" and "Projectors and TV" sections Alexey Kudryavtsev. Here is his expert opinion on the screen of the test sample.

The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface, resistant to scratches. Judging by the brightness of the reflected objects, there is a very effective anti-glare filter that is superior in reducing the brightness of reflections to the screen filter of Google Nexus 7 (2013) (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected in the off screens (on the left - Nexus 7, on the right - Samsung Galaxy S5, then they can be distinguished by size):

Due to the slight difference in the color tone of the reflection and the frames, it is difficult to visually assess the amount of decrease in the brightness of the reflection, however, the statistics from the graphics editor show that the screen on the S5 is actually a little darker than on the Nexus 7. The ghosting of reflected objects is very weak, this indicates that there is no air gap between the layers of the screen. On the outer surface of the screen there is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating (very effective, maybe a little better than Google Nexus 7), so fingerprints are removed much easier, and appear at a slower rate than in the case of ordinary glass.

When displaying a white field in full screen and with manual brightness control, its maximum value was 340 cd/m², the minimum was 2 cd/m². Despite not the highest brightness value, even in bright daylight, the smartphone can be used, as an effective anti-glare filter helps out. You also need to take into account the fact that in this case the smaller the white area on the screen, the lighter it is, that is, the actual maximum brightness of the white areas will almost always be higher than the specified value. For example, when outputting white on half the screen, the maximum brightness with manual adjustment rises to 360 cd/m². The low brightness mode allows you to use your smartphone without any problems even in total darkness. Automatic brightness control works according to the light sensor (it is located to the right of the front speaker). You can make adjustments to how this function works by moving the adjustment slider from −5 before +5 units. Next, for three conditions, we present the screen brightness values ​​for three values ​​of this setting - for −5 , 0 and +5 . In complete darkness in automatic mode, the brightness decreases to 4, 9 and 16 cd / m², respectively (generally dark), in an office lit by artificial light (about 400 lux), the brightness is set to 100, 180 and 270 cd / m² (acceptable ), in a bright environment (corresponding to a clear day outdoors, but without direct sunlight - 20000 lx or a little more) - rises to 420-425 cd / m² for all three correction values, which is more than the maximum with manual adjustment and should be enough to ensure readability in the sun. In principle, the result of the work of this function corresponds to the expected. When the brightness is lowered, modulation appears at a frequency of 240 Hz. The figure below shows brightness (vertical axis) versus time (horizontal axis) for three brightness settings:

It can be seen that at maximum brightness there is practically no modulation (the amplitude is insufficient for visual distinguishability of flicker), but at medium and low brightness the relative modulation amplitude is high, so image flicker can be seen in the test for the presence of a stroboscopic effect or simply with rapid eye movement. Depending on individual sensitivity, such flickering can cause increased fatigue.

This smartphone uses a Super AMOLED matrix - an active matrix on organic light emitting diodes. A full color image is created using subpixels of three colors - red (R), green (G) and blue (B), but there are twice as many green subpixels, which can be referred to as RGBG. This is confirmed by a fragment of a microphoto:

(For comparison, see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.)

For such matrices, Samsung introduced the name PenTile RGBG. The manufacturer considers the screen resolution based on green subpixels, on the other two it will be two times lower. The location and shape of the subpixels in this variant is similar to the variant in the case of the Samsung Galaxy S4 screen. This version of PenTile RGBG is better than the old one with red squares, blue rectangles and stripes of green subpixels. However, some uneven contrasting borders and other artifacts are still present. For example, when displaying a black-and-white world through one pixel (the original can be taken from here), the vertical lines look uneven, and the horizontal ones are not contrasting and are separated not by white, but by a greenish gap. A fragment (the original photo is available at the link) of a macrophoto reveals the cause:

It can be seen that the vertical lines have a black gap and that the sum of the colors of the subpixels can be considered white, but due to the red subpixels on one side, some unevenness of the lines occurs. In the case of horizontal lines, there is neither a white gap (there are green subpixels) nor a black gap (there are red and blue subpixels). However, these artifacts are of purely academic interest, since in mobile use it is extremely difficult to visually distinguish such small details. As a result, the margin of resolution eliminates the "features" of the PenTile RGBG matrix.

The screen is characterized by excellent viewing angles, although the white color becomes slightly tinted when deviated at relatively large angles, but the black color is just black at any angle (although the reflection from bright objects has a bluish halo that is more horizontally elongated, which causes black areas in the light may lighten slightly to acquire a "metallic" tint). So black that the contrast parameter in this case is simply not applicable. When viewed perpendicularly, the uniformity of the white field is excellent. For comparison, here are photos in which the screens of the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the second participant of the competition display the same images, while the brightness of the screens is set to about 210 cd/m². White field perpendicular to the screens:

The excellent uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field can be noted. And a test picture (in mode Standard):

The color reproduction is clearly not bad, but with all the conventionality of the forced color balance in the camera, set to 6500 K, it is clear that the colors of the S5 are clearly “colder” and have too high saturation. Now at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen. White field:

The brightness at an angle for both screens has noticeably decreased (to avoid strong darkening, the shutter speed is doubled compared to the previous two photos), but in the case of Samsung, the drop in brightness is much less pronounced. And a test picture:

It can be seen that the colors did not “float” on all screens and the brightness of the Samsung S5 at an angle is noticeably higher.

Switching the state of the matrix elements is almost instantaneous, but at the on (and less often off) front there may be a step (or two) with a width of 16.7 ms (corresponding to a screen refresh rate of 60 Hz). For example, this is how the dependence of brightness on time looks like when moving from black to a hue of 25% (according to the numerical value of the color) and vice versa:

In some conditions, the presence of such a step can lead to plumes trailing behind moving objects, but in normal use it is almost impossible to see these artifacts. On the contrary, dynamic scenes in films on OLED screens are distinguished by high clarity and even some “twitchy” movements.

The ability to adjust color reproduction is implemented on the page with a choice of profiles, one of which implies some kind of automatic adjustment (profile Adapt Display):

In case one of the three fixed profiles is selected, except for the profile dynamic, built on 32 points with equal intervals by the numerical value of the grayscale, the gamma curve did not reveal any blockage in either the highlights or the shadows, and the exponent of the approximating power function is 2.28-2.30, which is slightly higher than the standard value of 2.2 , while the real gamma curve practically does not deviate from the power dependence:

For profile dynamic The gamma curve has a slightly S-shaped character, which increases the apparent contrast of the image. Recall that in the case of OLED screens, the brightness of image fragments dynamically changes in accordance with the nature of the displayed image - it decreases for light images in general and increases for dark ones. As a result, the resulting dependence of brightness on hue (gamma curve), most likely, does not correspond slightly to the gamma curve of a static image, since the measurements were carried out with sequential grayscale output almost on the entire screen. This image dynamism is enhanced by selecting the option Auto config. screen brightness. Below are the dependences of brightness on time obtained when switching from a black field to a white one and back with the option turned off and on Auto config. screen brightness:

In the second case, the brightness starts to decrease after some time. The picture is slightly darkened, but the energy is saved a little.

Color gamut in case of profiles dynamic, Standard and professional photography very wide and almost covers Adobe RGB coverage:

When choosing a profile Cinema coverage is pressed to the borders of sRGB, but still remains a little wider:

Without correction, the spectra of the components are very well separated:

In the case of a profile Cinema with the maximum correction, the color components already mix a little with each other:

Note that on screens with a wide color gamut, the colors of normal images optimized for sRGB devices appear unnaturally saturated. This can be seen in the photos above. However, a visual assessment showed that when choosing a profile Cinema saturation is noticeably reduced, and colors become close to natural. The screenshot taken after selecting this profile is shown below:

Unfortunately, the most recognizable shades - skin, for example - still remain slightly oversaturated.

The balance of shades on the gray scale is not ideal, but, in general, acceptable. Color temperature in profiles dynamic and Standard significantly higher than 6500 K, in the remaining two it is close to 6500 K, while in the gray scale section from white to dark dark gray, this parameter does not change very much. The deviation from the blackbody spectrum (ΔE) remains below 10 units over most of the gray scale, which is considered a good indicator for a consumer device, and also changes slightly:

(The darkest areas of the gray scale in most cases can be ignored, since there the color balance does not matter much, and the measurement error of color characteristics at low brightness is large.)

To summarize: the screen has a fairly high maximum brightness and a very effective anti-glare filter, so the smartphone can be used outdoors without any problems even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable value. It is acceptable, but in bright light it is even recommended to use the mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works more or less adequately. The advantages of the screen include a very good oleophobic coating and color balance close to the standard (when choosing the appropriate profiles). At the same time, let's recall the general advantages of OLED screens: true black color, excellent white field uniformity, less than LCD, the drop in image brightness when viewed from an angle. The disadvantages include modulation of the screen brightness, which appears at medium and low brightness values. Users who are particularly sensitive to flicker may experience fatigue as a result. However, overall the screen quality is very high.

Sound

In terms of sound, the smartphone is about the same as the Galaxy S4. The sound is moderately bassy, ​​not deprived of low frequencies, clear in the entire range, but not so loud - there were devices even louder (HTC One or Oppo Find 5, for example). The sound outlet grille is cut into the back wall, so that the sound is muffled when the device is on the table. In conversational dynamics, the voice of a familiar interlocutor, the timbre and intonation remain recognizable, making telephone conversations on the Samsung Galaxy S5 is quite comfortable.

To play music in the device provided a choice of three pre-installed players: Google Play Music, Yandex.Music and Samsung's own player. All sound effects when playing tunes with a branded player are combined by a technology called SoundAlive - however, some of them are available only with headphones connected. The same applies to the sound optimization function. There are a lot of various virtual effects, they are combined here in a matrix of squares, you can experiment for a very long time.

Camera

Samsung Galaxy S5 is equipped with two modules of digital cameras with a resolution of 16 and 2 megapixels. The front one takes pictures with a maximum resolution of 1920 × 1080, and shoots video with the same resolution.

The main, rear camera is equipped with a new 16-megapixel module with ultra-fast autofocus (focusing in 0.3 seconds), stabilization, single-section LED flash and the ability to shoot video in UHD (4K) resolution. In addition to one trendy feature - 4K video recording - another one is used here: as in the latest Sony Xperia Z2, there is a selective focus feature that allows you to highlight a certain part of the image, leaving the background blurry. That is, now to create the effect of shallow depth of field (DOF), you no longer need to use special lenses and lenses.

When shooting in automatic mode, which is set by default, photos are obtained at a size of 5312×2988. I really liked the design and organization of the new camera control interface. Here, as in the case of the audio settings menu, everything is divided into equivalent cells, each of which is always visible, interactive, their drawing is clear, the entire menu is perfectly visible even in the brightest sunlight. In general, the settings menu for controlling the camera turned out to be perhaps the best on the market in terms of ease of access to all functions and overall visibility.

The camera can shoot video in UHD (4K) resolution, there are several resolutions to choose from up to a maximum of 3840 × 2160. In the settings, traditionally for the latest top models of the mobile market, there are also slow and fast shooting modes. Sample test videos are shown below.

• Movie #1 (189 MB, 3840×2160, 4K)
• Clip #2 (58 MB, 1920×1080, 1080p)
• Clip #3 (123MB, 3840×2160, 4K indoor)
• Movie #4 (71 MB, 1280×720, slow motion)
• Movie #5 (4 MB, 1920×1080, fast)

Sample photos with our comments are presented below.

	Image sharpness is good.
	Sharpness across the field of the frame is also quite good.
	Small details are worked out quite well.
	With backlight, the camera does not do so well, but the exposure is well chosen.
	On thin lines, you can notice small waves from the operation of the noise reduction - but only upon closer examination.
	In low light, you can see the noise - however, relatively small.
	The camera handles noise in the shadows well. True, the detail from this suffers a little.
	The camera does well in low-light macro, but you should use the focus because of the relatively slow shutter speeds.
	In good light, macro photography works well with the camera.
	Another example of a good macro.
	The text worked out well, but a little damaged. However, it is possible that the camera works more accurately with smaller text.
	The stitching of panoramas is almost perfect. Only dynamic objects suffer, which is quite natural.

	Lighting ≈1300 lux. The camera does very well.
	Lighting ≈460 lux. The situation practically does not change.
	Lighting ≈240 lux. Noises become noticeable, especially their processing.
	Lighting ≈240 lux, flash. The flash noticeably improves the situation, almost returning the original resolution.
	Lighting<1 люкс. В темноте камера не справляется.
	Lighting<1 люкс, вспышка. И в темноте вспышка отрабатывает очень хорошо.

First of all, it is worth noting that now the camera has a 1 / 2.6 ″ sensor, and not just a higher resolution, while earlier smartphone cameras were honored only with 1/3 ″ format matrices (not counting Nokia), or even less, until Sony decided to install a 1 / 2.3 ″ sensor in the Xperia Z1. So Samsung, following Sony, began a slow but steady movement towards improving the quality of images. And, I must say, the result is already noticeable to an inquisitive eye.

Firstly, quite good work with noise is already visible. Their processing still leaves much to be desired, but if you do not look at the images pixel by pixel, then noticeable strong color noise in the shadows is almost invisible. Of course, this is the result of noise reduction, but the higher resolution allows it to work more subtly, and the increased sensor size slightly reduces the likelihood of strong noise. Of course, we will not start talking about the size of the pixel (like HTC) and the qualities of the camera supposedly resulting from this, but the increase in the sensor definitely pays off. Secondly, image detail has improved, which is also the merit of higher resolution and an enlarged sensor.

I would like Samsung to improve the noise reduction, then the camera can already be compared with ordinary compacts. Although even without this, she shows herself very worthy, and it is clear that they did a good job on her. The camera's optics work quite smoothly across the entire field of the frame and on all plans. Of course, it would be strange to see flaws in the flagship in such places, but we have already encountered this. Sharping can only be found if you know where to look. The only thing that really cannot be called ideal is the work of noise reduction - such a processing result looks very archaic in the pictures of a modern flagship.

Based on the results of shooting the stand, we can conclude that the real resolution of the images may not be the highest, but we have already stipulated that in this case this is far from the main characteristic, especially in the vicinity of such values, since the resolution can be high, but not quite natural. However, the resolution of the camera is quite decent. It is also worth noting the good work of the flash, and the sensor, which works quite stably in different lighting conditions.

In general, the camera is made very worthy, almost at the level of compact cameras. Of course, there is something to work on in it, and in general there is something to strive for. But even in its current form, it is well suited for shooting documentaries and feature stories.

Telephone part and communications

The developers put special emphasis on the communication capabilities of the Samsung Galaxy S5: the smartphone works in the fifth generation of Wi-Fi 802.11ac networks with support for 2 × 2 MIMO mode - in this mode, data can be received and transmitted in two streams, that is, up to two times faster than in the first generations of 802.11ac compatible devices. In addition, the device provides support for a large number of 4G (LTE) frequencies and speeds that comply with the LTE Category 4 standard - up to 150 Mbps. With the SIM card of the domestic operator Megafon, the smartphone in practice confidently finds and works with the LTE network.

In addition, the smartphone has support for the 5 GHz Wi-Fi band and the NFC standard. As a standard, you can organize a wireless access point via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth channels, there is a Wi-Fi Direct mode. The navigation module works both with the GPS system (with A-GPS) and with the domestic Glonass. The speed and quality of the GPS-module does not raise any complaints: the system works quickly, smoothly, the navigation module finds the first satellites almost instantly, and even indoors.

Spontaneous reboots / shutdowns were not observed during testing. The screen of the smartphone is large, so the drawing of letters and numbers on virtual keyboards is quite comfortable to control. It is very convenient that there is a dedicated top row with numbers - you do not have to switch the layout every time. But the layout itself and the layout of the keys are not the same as those of others: instead of just clicking on the dedicated button with the image of a globe, here you have to switch language layouts by scrolling sideways on the spacebar, which is certainly less convenient. The phone application supports Smart Dial, that is, while dialing a phone number, a search is also carried out immediately by the first letters in contacts. Support for non-stop writing by sliding is available here, but there is no possibility to move the keyboard closer to one of the edges, as on the Galaxy Note series tablet phones.

OS and software

The system uses the Google Android software platform of the latest version 4.4.2 (Kitkat) and the proprietary graphical user interface TouchWiz, the appearance of which has changed. He became, according to the new fashion, more “flat”, which clearly benefited him, although the traditional Asian frivolity remained. The appearance of the settings menu has changed: now all icons look like exactly the same circles and they are arranged in a single long list. But, of course, the menu display can be changed, leading to the old view with vertical tabs. In this case, there will be no longer four, as before, but as many as six. In general, I liked the new look of the interface and the settings menu more than the old one: everything is combed, ordered, symmetrical, working with various subsections of the menu has become more intuitive. The menu of installed applications has not undergone significant changes, but now you can display a special button on the home screen, by clicking on which a context menu opens with quick access to the most popular applications. The notification menu has received two additional dedicated oval buttons for quickly switching to search throughout the smartphone and enabling quick connection to familiar devices.

To the various ways to lock the smartphone, another one has now been added: you can lock the screen using a fingerprint scanner, the scanner of which is built into the central key below the screen. To successfully memorize the texture of the pad of your finger, you must swipe at least eight times on the sensor, after which you will also have to come up with a standard digital code in case the finger remains unrecognized within five attempts. It's a shame when the developer also imposes restrictions on the personal password you create: an attempt to limit yourself to a digital password failed - you need to intersperse numbers with letters.

By the way, the security issue has been strengthened in the Samsung Galaxy S5 with another innovation: now, due to the appearance of the “Children” mode, you can open access only to certain permitted programs, and then calmly entrust the device for 30 thousand rubles to a child to play.

If we are talking about games, then it is worth noting that we tested such games as Dead Trigger 2 and Asphalt 8 on the smartphone - no problems were found with their playback.

Another specific mode of operation has been added to the smartphone, about which the developers themselves spoke a lot at the presentations. In fact, this is the usual energy-saving mode that any built-in energy-saving program in mobile devices has, it’s just that Samsung brings its smartphone to completely “depletion” in this mode. When the maximum power saving mode is activated, not only all network interfaces are disabled, but also the graphical interface of the shell becomes black and white, and the number of applications allowed to work is severely limited. Naturally, in this mode, the smartphone can “work” much longer (who would doubt it), but this work will be carried out in a very limited framework.

One of the central applications pre-installed in modern top-end Samsung smartphones, which developers are constantly reminded of, is a program for monitoring one's own health called S Health. The program has a wide range of health-improving functions: a pedometer, exercise recording, nutrition control, etc. Now the application has not only received a new version of S Health 3.0, but also acquired additional functionality in the form of a dedicated hardware heart rate counter. In principle, some programs used to try to count heart beats using an ordinary smartphone camera, and now they have allocated a whole block with a small camera and backlight for this. You need to put your finger on the recess in the back of the smartphone, and then the program will count your pulse. Naturally, this data is stored, processed and displayed in the form of graphs and tips for maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Performance

The hardware platform of the Samsung Galaxy S5 is based on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 single-chip quad-core system (SoC). The chip version was limited to 2.36 GHz.

The processor is supported in graphics processing by the same Adreno 330 video accelerator, but here there is an increase in frequencies: the GPU is already overclocking to 578 MHz instead of 450 MHz. About 12 GB (out of 16) are initially available for the user's needs in the device, the amount of RAM here is 2 GB - in this regard, surprisingly, there was no increase, while Sony equipped its latest flagship with three gigabytes random access memory. MicroSD memory cards are supported in this model, you can also connect external flash drives, keyboards and mice using a special adapter in OTG mode.

Since the most powerful and most productive of the competing serial platforms is now the SoC MediaTek MT6592, which includes eight full-fledged processor cores, [simultaneously] operating at a frequency of up to 2 GHz, it is logical to include its results in the comparison first of all. Recall that we recently released a review of the powerful TCL Idol X + smartphone, which is built on the maximum version of this platform. Also, of course, it is worth adding to the comparison the results shown in the same tests by the previous version of the Qualcomm platform - Snapdragon 800, which runs all the top smartphones of last year. However, the most important battle today will still not take place, because the main competitor of the hero of today's review, the flagship smartphone Sony Xperia Z2, also built on the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 801, has not yet reached our test lab. In the near future, we will definitely compare it with the Samsung Galaxy S5 data received today.

To get an idea of ​​the platform performance of the tested smartphone, let's run a standard set of tests.

For convenience, we have summarized all the results obtained by us when testing a smartphone in the latest versions of popular benchmarks in tables. Several other devices from different segments are usually added to the table, also tested on similar latest versions of benchmarks (this is done only for a visual assessment of the obtained dry numbers). Unfortunately, within the framework of one comparison, it is impossible to present the results from different versions of benchmarks, so many worthy and relevant models remain “behind the scenes” due to the fact that they once passed the “obstacle course” on previous versions of test programs.

Testing in MobileXPRT, as well as in the latest versions of AnTuTu 4.x and GeekBench 3:

The test results are as follows. As for the competing MediaTek MT6592, the latest Qualcomm system (Snapdragon 801) coped with it in all respects. In general, this is not at all surprising, given that the previous version of the Snapdragon 800 coped with it. As for the comparison with the Snapdragon 800, according to the results of all tests, there was practically no real increase: the same maximum 35K points in AnTuTu, and in other benchmarks, the difference is negligible - within the margin of error.

By the way, with regard to these very resulting figures: since the smartphone being tested today is a landmark device, and the rest will be equal to it throughout the year, it is probably worth recalling the fresh alignment of forces. If you rely on the numbers of the popular AnTuTu benchmark, it looks something like this: eight MediaTek MT6592 cores with a frequency of 2 GHz demonstrate 31K points in this test (26 thousand points for the eight-core Zopo 998 and THL T100S with a lower frequency of processor cores - 1.7 GHz), and about 35,000 in top smartphones such as LG G2, Sony Xperia Z1, Acer Liquid S2 and now Samsung Galaxy S5, built on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800/801 hardware platform. There are two main conclusions from all these comparisons: TCL Idol X + is the first smartphone based on the MediaTek platform, which managed to get close to the leading Qualcomm solutions, albeit due to twice as many processor cores. And secondly, the new version of Qualcomm's top platform brought almost no increase in performance, although this microscopic superiority allowed it to gain a foothold on the podium even more firmly as the undisputed leader among platforms for mobile devices. According to the above, the Samsung Galaxy S5 smartphone based on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 platform is currently one of the most powerful smartphones on the planet.

When testing in 3DMark for the highest performing smartphones, it is now possible to run the application in Unlimited mode, where the rendering resolution is fixed at 720p and VSync is disabled (due to which the speed can rise above 60 fps).

The results of testing the graphics subsystem in the Epic Citadel gaming test, as well as Basemark X and Bonsai Benchmark:

The lag in the operation of the Mali-450MP4 video subsystem is still noticeable: this video accelerator produces approximately 47 fps in those test modes in which the Adreno 330 produces 60 fps.

Browser cross-platform tests:

As for benchmarks for assessing the speed of the javascript engine, you should always make allowances for the fact that the results in them depend significantly on the browser in which they are launched, so that the comparison can only be truly correct in the same OS and browsers, and this possibility is available when testing not always. In the case of Android OS, we always try to use Google Chrome.

Video playback

To test the "omnivorous" when playing video (including support for various codecs, containers and special features, such as subtitles), we used the most common formats, which make up the bulk of the content available on the Web. Note that for mobile devices it is important to have support for hardware video decoding at the chip level, since it is most often impossible to process modern versions using processor cores alone. Also, you should not expect everything from a mobile device to decode everything, since the leadership in flexibility belongs to the PC, and no one is going to challenge it.

With video playback, the Samsung Galaxy S5 is not as smooth as we would like. Surprisingly, this is one of the rare smartphones in which the popular MX player flatly refuses to start with the Hardware + decoder, and most often only this option saves the day when the regular player cannot play the audio track of the file. That is, in the case of the Samsung Galaxy S5, in order to play three out of five of our test files (MKV) normally, you will have to use a software decoder (at least for audio decoding - video can be decoded by hardware) - neither Hardware nor Hardware + , nor, of course, the decoder of a regular video player is not able to play these common types of files with sound on the network. And this is a clear drawback, because we have a solution with an excellent in all respects large and high-quality screen and maximum performance, which could become an excellent multimedia assistant. By the way, Galaxy Note 3 also has similar problems - we hope that with the release of updates for the MX Player, the situation will somehow change. By the way, top LG and Sony smartphones are always in perfect order in this plate, because even with their own hardware they are able to play all the files presented, not to mention support for all modes of the MX player.

¹ Audio in MX Video Player only played after switching to software decoding Hardware+ not supported); The regular player does not have such a setting.

Additionally, the MHL interface was tested. To test it, we used the LG IPS237L monitor, which supports direct MHL connection using a passive Micro-USB to HDMI adapter cable. Recall that Samsung has implemented its own version of this interface at the physical level. As a result, to connect an external device via MHL, you need to use special adapters or connect standard MHL adapters through simple passive adapters. In this case, we conducted the test using a proprietary Samsung adapter, while MHL output was carried out at a resolution of 1920 by 1080 pixels at 60 fps.

When the smartphone is in portrait orientation, the image on the monitor screen is also displayed in portrait orientation, while the image on the monitor is inscribed in the screen boundaries in height, and wide black fields are displayed on the right and left. In this case, the actual resolution on the monitor screen is, of course, lower than the resolution on the smartphone screen. When the smartphone is in landscape orientation, the image is displayed on the monitor screen in landscape orientation, while the image on the monitor is inscribed within the screen boundaries and exactly matches the image on the smartphone screen. The exception is the start screen, which is displayed only in portrait orientation:

The sound is output via MHL (in this case, the sounds were heard through the headphones connected to the monitor, since there are no speakers in the monitor itself) and has a good quality. At the same time, at least multimedia sounds are not output through the loudspeaker of the smartphone itself, and the volume is controlled by the buttons on the smartphone case. In principle, in the smartphone settings, you can select the sound output mode - stereo or surround. However, in our case, the monitor only accepted stereo sound, so there was no choice. The smartphone connected via MHL is charging.

To test the display of video files on the screen of the device itself, we used a set of test files with an arrow and a rectangle moving one division per frame (see "Methodology for testing video signal playback and display devices. Version 1 (for mobile devices)"). Screenshots with a shutter speed of 1 s helped determine the nature of the output frames of video files with different parameters: the resolution varied (1280 by 720 (720p), 1920 by 1080 (1080p) and 3840 by 2160 (4K) pixels) and frame rate (24, 25, 30, 50 and 60 fps). In tests, we used the MX Player video player in Hardware mode, as there were a lot of artifacts in Hardware+ mode. The results of this test (the block titled "Smartphone screen") are summarized in the table:

Note: If both columns Uniformity and Passes green ratings are set, this means that, most likely, when watching movies, artifacts caused by uneven interleaving and dropping frames will either not be visible at all, or their number and visibility will not affect viewing comfort. Red marks indicate possible problems with the playback of the respective files.

According to the criterion for displaying frames, the quality of playing video files on the screen of the smartphone itself is high, since frames (or groups of frames) can be displayed with more or less uniform alternation of intervals, and there are no frame drops. The smartphone can even display 4K resolution files up to and including 30p. However, uniform frame interleaving is a relatively unstable state, since some external and internal background processes cause the correct interleaving of intervals between frames to periodically fail. When playing video files with a resolution of 1920 by 1080 (1080p) on a smartphone screen, the image of the video file itself is displayed exactly along the border of the screen, one to one in pixels, that is, in the original resolution (adjusted for some features of PenTile). The brightness range displayed on the screen actually corresponds to the standard range of 16-235 - in the shadows, only a couple of shades merge with black, but in the highlights, all gradations of shades are displayed. However, dark scenes may not look very good, as the darkest shades vary too much in brightness and color tone, which can lead to excessively noticeable compression artifacts.

With a monitor connected via MHL, when playing video with a standard player, the image of the video file is displayed only in landscape orientation, while only the picture of the video file is displayed on the monitor, and only information elements and virtual controls are displayed on the smartphone screen.

The results of the monitor output tests are shown in the table above in the "MHL (monitor output)" block. The output quality is very good. When playing video files with Full HD resolution (1920 by 1080 pixels) on the monitor screen, the image of the video file itself is displayed exactly along the border of the screen while maintaining true proportions, and the resolution corresponds to Full HD resolution. The brightness range displayed on the monitor is equal to the standard range of 16-235, that is, all gradations of shades are displayed in the shadows and in the highlights.

The conclusion is typical: the MHL connection can be used for games, watching movies, web browsing and other activities that benefit from a multiple increase in screen size. True, you will have to purchase an adapter specifically for Samsung or find the appropriate adapter.

Battery Life

The lithium-ion battery installed in the Samsung Galaxy S5 has a good by modern standards, but not a record-breaking capacity of 2800 mAh. Accordingly, in terms of battery life, the device showed very good results, which we traditionally summarized in a comparative table.

Continuous reading in the FBReader program (with a standard, light theme) at the minimum comfortable brightness level (brightness was set to 100 cd / m²) lasted more than 17 hours until the battery was completely discharged, and when continuously watching YouTube videos in high quality (HQ) with the device lasted 12.5 hours with the same brightness level through the home Wi-Fi network, in the 3D games mode the smartphone withstood 4.5 hours worthy for such a screen, and I was really pleased with such stability: its predecessor Galaxy S4 at first overheated a lot and with these tests do poorly, and only with the firmware update the situation returned to normal. With the new flagship, even now, before the start of sales, no problems were found in this regard, and by the way, the device heats up much less than its predecessor.

Outcome

Summarizing the review of the Samsung Galaxy S5 is both easy and difficult. It's easy, because perhaps no one needs to explain why the flagship smartphones of the Korean company are deservedly one of the best on the market. And it’s not only the combination of top-end technical characteristics and maximum performance that distinguishes them, there is something else. It seems to us that the company is one of the few who are not ashamed to spy on the desires of users. For most manufacturers, this always remains only unfulfilled pompous slogan promises, but in practice, no matter how much users cry about something, they will never get it. But the Koreans have a completely different point of view on this matter, they readily satisfy any desires of buyers. Want a removable battery? - Get it. Need a memory card slot? - Yes, for God's sake, we do not mind! Suddenly fell in love with the golden color? “Here, we now have a golden smartphone. And with such simple actions, coupled with good quality products and huge production volumes, the Korean company managed to climb to the very top of the mountain, pushing many along the way, and simply throwing someone off the cliff. The one who knows how to adapt survives, and this is what the Koreans do best.

As for the hero of today's review, here we can say with confidence that he has become a worthy successor to the flagship line. An excellent screen, a powerful filling, complete technical equipment, good battery life and maximum functionality, a few added features like a heart rate monitor and a fingerprint scanner - all this is worthy of praise. Although, it’s worth recognizing that there weren’t so many noticeable innovations in the fifth Galaxy S to rightfully call it a completely new model, in terms of design and appearance, it’s so for sure (in this regard, by the way, there was even a kind of decline: the smartphone has become heavier, larger, rougher - everyone admits this). It’s even surprising how the Koreans didn’t call this Galaxy S4s model - such a “letter modifier”, which has already become universally recognized, denoting an improved version of the model, would be more appropriate here. But it's all just a little embarrassing.

But what is really depressing is the way Samsung breaks down the prices of its top-end smartphones. It seems that the Koreans no longer remember that prices can sometimes be varied somehow - they reached the 30,000th mark with the previous flagship and now put the same price tag on all subsequent models as a matter of course. The cunning thought in the minds of entrepreneurs, obviously, is this: “They will complain the first time, but the next time they will be glad that they didn’t raise the price even higher.” So, by the way, it happened: now users are already happy that the price of the new flagship at the start of sales was not raised higher than that of the previous one. This is very alarming, and of course, against this background, it is difficult to recommend such a device for purchase: it is certainly very worthy, but for many, Samsung products may not be affordable right now. Did we think about five years ago that we would talk like this about the products of this Korean company in the future?

Contents of delivery:

• Telephone
• Charger with USB cable
• Instruction
• Wired stereo headset

Positioning

A parity situation arose on the global market - de facto the market was divided by two players, Apple and Samsung. Each company has its own flagship, for Apple this is actually the only product - the iPhone, you can not take into account the old models or the iPhone 5c, which appeared in 2013. For Samsung, the range of products is much larger, but the main focus is on the Galaxy S, which is the best-selling phone that competes with the iPhone. In 2013, sales of the Galaxy S4 came close to the iPhone 5, in some countries they even exceeded the iPhone by several months, but then a new model came out, and everything was back to normal. Samsung quite rightly believes that the Galaxy S4 has become a successful product, although dreams that its sales will exceed those of the iPhone have not materialized. Moreover, the potential of this device is very high, until today its versions are being released, which will live on the market for at least another year and a half. And here Samsung fell into exactly the same trap as Apple before them - the previous models began to look more attractive than the new ones. Let me remind you that with the release of the iPhone 5 and the new version of iOS 7, many people suddenly began to buy the iPhone 4s, since the design of this device and its characteristics seemed better to them. There was no difference in the quality and size of the screen, there were no significant, big differences either. This happened for the first time for Apple, when the old model, unexpectedly after the release of the new one, did not become a niche, but took up to half of sales.

For Samsung, Apple's model is not entirely suitable, it is difficult to draw direct parallels - so after the release of S4, sales of S3 remained high and noticeable, but these were products of completely different price classes. In contrast to Apple, Samsung's flagships are constantly depreciating throughout the year, with a total loss of 33 percent in original cost. Therefore, shifting the situation to Apple will not work, the companies are in different positions. But it's safe to say that the Galaxy S5 tried to keep all the features of the previous device, and also not make it a competitor to the Note 3, plus keep sales of all variants of the S4. Despite all the public announcements, sales plans and the like, it's safe to say that the Galaxy S5, despite its flagship status, does not play such a role for Samsung. It is possible that this is due to the release of an older version of the device, the presence of which is denied by the company, or the release of Note 4 in September, to which the focus is gradually shifting. Of course, the sales volume of this model will be at least at the level of S4, perhaps 10-15 percent higher. But the sales boost will come from the cheaper variants of the S4, which we're betting on, as well as the Note line. This happened for the first time and looks like a conscious decision, from which all the characteristics of the flagship follow.

For the first time in the Galaxy S5, the technical specifications do not exceed those for the model of the Note line, in our case it is Note 3. Formally, we can talk about an improved camera, but it does not offer striking differences in photo quality, the processor is about the same performance, the amount of memory, including RAM, less in S5. These are clearly products of a different class, and Note 3 looks very advantageous compared to S5, it was clearly breathed a second life into it by this announcement.

For the buyer, this means that buying the Galaxy S5 is not at all as profitable as it might seem at first glance, since its alternatives look extremely attractive and interesting. First of all, this is the Galaxy S4, secondly - Note 3. It is curious that there are almost no reasons for choosing the S5 over these devices - all these reasons are insignificant, and their combination will not become an outweighing factor for the majority. While it is possible that many consumers will change their phones out of inertia, this group of buyers has remained the same for many years. As an unclear factor, the release date of the new iPhone remains, if it takes place in the summer, then this will have an impact on the choice of many people. It is also obvious that by increasing the screen size, Apple will eliminate one of the most serious complaints that these smartphones had. These factors will certainly influence S5 sales and selection.

Many software chips from the Galaxy S5 may not come to previous models, not because of the possibility of their implementation, but for purely marketing reasons, it is necessary to show the difference in the devices, to draw attention to the new product.

An interesting question is whether it is worth changing the Galaxy S4 to S5. Such a replacement will be pleasant (faster device, better camera, there are different chips), but you will not notice much difference. Although there is still a certain sense in this. But replacing Note 3 with Galaxy S5, in my opinion, is definitely devoid of any sense, these are products of a different class. However, let's look at what the S5 is.

Design, dimensions, controls

Samsung tries not to experiment with the design of its devices, it remains unchanged from year to year. While testing the Galaxy S4 Black and S5 for work, I kept getting confused about which phone was in front of me. It is almost impossible to distinguish them by the front panel at a cursory glance. You will succeed much better in the pictures, but in life they are completely similar - even slightly different sizes are not striking.

The phone size is 142x72.5x8.1 mm, weight is 145 grams. Let me remind you that for S4 these parameters were 136.6x69.8x7.9 mm, 130 grams. Slightly higher, slightly wider. In the hand, the difference is not felt in any way, exactly the same grip - it fits easily in any pocket.

Samsung Galaxy S5 and Samsung Galaxy S4

Designers came off on the back cover of the device - it has a structure under the skin, with uniform dots applied to the surface. Initially, 4 different colors are offered.

Two years ago I had an X-Drago Dash Dot case that had almost the same design as the back of the S5.

I can’t recall a case when a manufacturer would copy someone else’s case when creating their flagship. This is another indicator of the crisis of ideas that is on the market - the same solutions are chewed up by many companies.

The feeling from the back cover is strange, it is a little oily, as if soaked in some kind of solution. When you hold the device in your hands, your fingers begin to sweat on this cover (it is possible that this is an individual reaction of my body, but others also noted this after asking a question about their feelings).

Another characteristic feature is the warnings that it is necessary to close the cover of the charging connector tightly, it appears after each charge. There are no sensors here, just common sense, suggesting that in order to charge the device, you opened the connector. Also, after opening the case, you are asked to check its tightness.

On the left side surface there is a paired volume control button, on the right side there is an on / off button. At the top end there is a 3.5 headphone jack, it is moved to the right (on the S4 on the left and next to the second microphone), this is done so that the microphone is not blocked when the headphones are on. There is also an IrDA window.

Samsung Galaxy S5 and Apple iPhone 5S

Samsung Galaxy S5 and Samsung Galaxy Note 3

Above the screen you can see a 2-megapixel front camera, as well as a proximity sensor. The physical key below the screen is adjacent to two touch buttons - everything is unchanged here, except that the key assignment has changed in accordance with the way it is done in KitKat.

Display

Perhaps this is the biggest disappointment - for the first time, Samsung decided not to increase the screen resolution for its flagship, but only slightly increase the diagonal - now it is 5.1 inches at a resolution of 1080x1920 pixels (432 dpi, in S4 - 441 dpi). It is impossible to see individual pixels of the screen, the resolution of the human eye does not allow this. There are no barriers for superhumans, and they see pixelation even on this device. Screen type SuperAMOLED, displays up to 16 million colors.

One of the user misconceptions is the claim that Super AMOLED screens are too bright, colors are saturated and unnatural. In the screen settings, you can choose any display option, including those typical for screens from other manufacturers (dimmer, natural colors). It is interesting that screens from other manufacturers give out the maximum possible, and it is impossible to make them brighter, more contrast, and colors more saturated. In Samsung, the flexibility of settings is maximum.

Just like in S4, there is an option "Optimize display". This is the most interesting setting, as the device analyzes the level of lighting around and, depending on the conditions, sets the contrast, brightness, plus adjusts the colors on the screen. It turns out that the white color looks white in almost all conditions. Another setting is “Professional Photography” (previously called Adobe RGB), but it has almost no effect on the image display quality, the latter does not noticeably change compared to other settings (I could not notice this).

In the sun, the screen looks great, there are no problems, readability has increased slightly, this is due to a change in the screen itself, which I want to say separately. So, for the first time testing the video playback time on this device and the S4 Black Edition at maximum screen backlight, I noticed white light on the S5, the picture looked much worse. It was a clear step backwards.

After playing with the settings, I found a rather funny thing - the picture quality is excellent and completely comparable to S4 with automatic backlighting (default setting), but an attempt to unscrew the brightness up instantly leads to negative consequences. Also, the performance of Adaptive Display is such that it is focused on the power saving mode, the colors are muted. To get a picture like on the S4, you should choose one of the other display modes.

With brightness, everything became clear in the sun, with automatic adjustment, it twists up precisely in these conditions, readability in direct sunlight increases dramatically. Although I could not notice much difference in Moscow with the same Note 3 (Samsung Galaxy S5 in the photos above).

I have a strong feeling that the default settings are set in favor of some scenario where people want not very bright, muted colors and medium backlight - plus, it saves battery. You should choose these parameters for yourself.

And here are some screen comparison photos with S4. Let me remind you that the screen in S4 was and remains the best on the market, in the review of S4 there was a large comparison of displays, the situation has not changed in a year.

Comparison with Samsung Galaxy S4, Samsung Galaxy S5 from below:

Comparison with Samsung Galaxy S4, Samsung Galaxy S5 from above:

Fingerprint scanner

The function is quite curious and appeared in response to the fingerprint scanner in the iPhone 5s, where you need to put your finger on the button. Unlike Apple's implementation, the S5 simply swipes across the center of the screen and touches the center key. In the settings, you can register up to 3 fingerprints, holding the phone with one hand is very inconvenient. Someone, perhaps, will contrive, and it will come out, but it doesn’t work out like that for me - therefore, only with two hands. With Apple, one hand is enough - and the device itself is smaller.

Almost always, the scanner works perfectly, determines the fingerprint quickly and unlocks the phone. During operation, I saw a message several times that the surface of the device was wet, I was asked to wipe it. Apparently, a sensor is involved here, which is already in the S4 and measures the ambient temperature and humidity.

It is difficult to say anything special about the scanner, everything works and does not cause any complaints.

Battery and Power Saving Modes

The phone has a 2800 mAh Li-Ion battery (2600 mAh in the S4), the manufacturer indicates up to 390 hours of standby time, up to 21 hours of talk time, up to 10 hours of video playback and about 45 hours of music listening. . In isolation from reality, these results are impressive, but you and I know very well that in practice, most Android smartphones do not live that long and show very different results.

Before discussing the operating time of the device, let me remind you that initially only the S5 version, built on the Qualcomm chipset, appears on the market, the Exynos version will be later - therefore, we are talking only about this version of the phone. But there shouldn't be much difference.

Samsung Galaxy S4 and Samsung Galaxy S5

So, the easiest way was to take the same FullHD movie in X.264 and see how long the Galaxy S4 could play it (I took the Black Edition version on Qualcomm). Video player program - MX Player, without hardware decoding. The result with the maximum brightness of the screen, the sound turned off and offline turned out to be typical - about 9.5 hours.

For most modern smartphones, this is an unattainable result, for example, MTK devices run a similar video for about 4-5 hours (with a comparable battery capacity). The S5 test revealed a curious moment - the device worked for about 12 hours and 40 minutes. Unfortunately, during playback, it went to the main menu once, so I had to start playback again - but the impact of this incident is minimal, it can be ignored, since the screen time shows how long the video played.

Many people are impressed by the "naked" numbers, but how often do we watch non-stop videos and do not use other features? Of course, infrequently, because the phone is a universal combine in which we use literally all the possibilities. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate collectively how the battery works, how long it allows the phone to stretch. Here we can say that the S5 does not differ much from the S4, the operating time is comparable - with heavy use of the device, it will sit down around lunchtime (3-4 hours of screen operation and a couple of GB of data). With not very strong use, it can survive until the evening. Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to notice much difference from the S4, the device definitely loses to the same Note 3, which currently remains the champion in terms of power consumption and quietly survives until the evening with any usage profile.

However, in the phone settings, two more modes were added to the already existing power saving modes, and a quick power button was created for them. There is a regular power-saving mode in which you can limit the background work of applications, turn on gray colors for the screen (this is a feature for AMOLED - gray color consumes almost no energy). Moreover, in grayscale, you can work almost everywhere, even watch a video - but it will be gray, which is not very pleasant and convenient.

I was interested to see if it was possible to live a whole day in this power consumption mode. I managed to do it calmly, we can say that the device will last for two days, but it will not bring you pleasure. It is unlikely that there will be people who will use the screen in such colors. There is also another limitation - in Whatsapp and other programs that use a background connection, work stops, you stop receiving messages. For social networks that Samsung knows and the SNS program, and with access permissions obtained on your phone (Facebook, Instagram, 4square, Twitter), you receive push messages from the Samsung service. That is, the power saving mode also has a software chip - instead of push messages from different services / programs, they come in a certain interval from only one. This interval cannot be configured, all settings are hidden from the user. Look at the graphs of using the phone in this mode.

This power save mode is great when you're running low on battery, but you need all the features of your phone. Then, at 10 percent of the charge, you can easily live for about two hours, practically without denying yourself anything. Two hours is an active use of the device, but in a pocket it can live much longer.

In the early firmware of the device, the power-saving mode launch widget showed the approximate operating time in two modes - normal and maximum. For the commercial version, the first mode was removed, it can be activated from the menu, but you cannot see the estimated operating time.

The maximum power limit mode cuts almost everything, at 35 percent of the battery charge the phone will be able to work in standby mode for at least 4 days. But, of course, it all depends on how you will use it. The gray scale is also turned on, but all communications are cut off, the list of running applications is limited only to those that you have allowed, all background processes are turned off. This is a very deeply revised procedure, since many system functions are disabled, you will not be able to take a screenshot in this mode, many built-in options will be unavailable (but you do not need them).

I liked this mode because when the battery runs out, by activating this mode with one touch, you can safely live until the evening - SMS and voice will be available to you.

In the bottom line, we have a fairly typical and voracious Android, which, however, works quite comparable to the iPhone 5s on the same tasks. To avoid unnecessary disputes and battles, I want to emphasize that each of us has our own set of applications, work profile, backlight brightness, and so on. A phone that will work for one person for two days, another will sit down by dinner. Therefore, you should not give the schedules of the operation of your devices, they do not say anything at all, you need to compare the devices at the same time, with the same load. For the S5, it is worth focusing on a full day of work, taking into account the fact that you will use certain energy-saving chips, without denying, however, all the pleasures of this device.

Camera

The camera is dedicated to a separate material in which you can learn everything that is possible about it.

Hardware platform, memory, performance

The phone uses the Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8974AC chipset, also called the Snapdragon 801. This is the fastest chipset from Qualcomm at the moment, its previous version MSM8974AB was used in such a device as the LG G2. Quad-core processor, maximum frequency 2.45 GHz, GPU has a frequency of 578 MHz (previously 450 MHz). The frequency of the LPDDR3 memory bus has also been overclocked - from 800 to 933 MHz. In many ways, this is what gives an increase in performance.

The amount of RAM is 2 GB (after downloading half is free), internal memory is 16 GB (there is a 32 GB version, but it is unlikely to be widely available on the market). The amount of memory occupied by programs is about 4 GB. Memory card - up to 64 GB.

In synthetic tests, the device shows excellent results, overtaking the same Note 3, despite the smaller amount of RAM.

Before the advent of commercial firmware, performance was lower, the device lost to Note 3. Now it is slightly higher in performance. But these are synthetic tests that interest lovers of virtual parrots. For them - a few more tests.

In normal, everyday life, the speed of the device is excellent. The interface is extremely responsive and fast. Those who can see stutter will see it everywhere - but it's one of the fastest devices out there right now. There is no difference with the iPhone 5s in terms of speed.

USB, Bluetooth, communication capabilities

Bluetooth. Bluetooth version 4.0 (LE). When transferring files to other devices that support this technology, Wi-Fi 802.11 n is used, and the theoretical transfer speed is about 24 Mbps. Checking the transfer of 1 GB of a file showed a maximum speed of about 12 Mbps within three meters between devices.

The model supports various profiles, in particular Headset, Handsfree, Serial Port, Dial Up Networking, File Transfer, Object Push, Basic Printing, SIM Access, A2DP. Working with headsets does not raise any questions, everything is ordinary.

USB connection. In Android 4, for some reason, they abandoned the USB Mass Storage mode, leaving only MTP (there is also a PTP mode).

USB version - 3, data transfer rate - about 50 Mb / s.

When connected via USB, the device is charged.

The microUSB connector also supports the MHL standard, which means that using a special cable (available from electronics stores) you can connect your phone to a TV (to the HDMI output). In fact, the standard describes the ability to connect via microUSB to HDMI. This solution looks more preferable than a separate miniHDMI-connector on the case.

The maximum data transfer rate in LTE is 150 Mbps.

WiFi. 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac is supported, the wizard is similar to that for Bluetooth. You can remember the selected networks, automatically connect to them. It is possible to set up a connection to the router with one touch, for this you need to press a key on the router, and also activate a similar button in the device menu (WPA SecureEasySetup). Of the additional options, it is worth noting the setup wizard, it appears when the signal is weak or disappears. You can also set Wi-Fi to work on a schedule.

HT40 mode of operation is also supported for 802.11n, allowing you to double the Wi-Fi throughput (requires support from another device).

WiFi Direct. A protocol that aims to replace Bluetooth or compete with its third version (it also uses Wi-Fi version n to transfer large files). In the Wi-Fi settings menu, select the Wi-Fi Direct section, the phone starts searching for devices around. Select the desired device, activate the connection on it, and voila. Now in the file manager you can view files on another device, as well as transfer them. Another option is to simply find the devices connected to your router and transfer the necessary files to them, this can be done from the gallery or other sections of the phone. The main thing is that the device supports Wi-Fi Direct.

NFC. The device has NFC technology, it can be used with various additional applications.

S Beam. A technology that allows you to transfer a file of several gigabytes to another phone in a few minutes. In fact, we see in S Beam a combination of two technologies - NFC and Wi-Fi Direct. The first technology is used to bring and authorize phones, but the second is already used to transfer the files themselves. The creatively redesigned way to use Wi-Fi Direct is much easier than using the connection on two devices, selecting files, and so on.

IR port. Required to use the phone as a remote control for various household appliances. Automatically configured for almost any model of equipment.

Software features - some features and children's mode, S Health

I described all the features of the new version of TouchWiz, pre-installed programs and all the new features in a separate and voluminous material. This is done on purpose so as not to be repeated here.

The Galaxy S5 pays a lot of attention to new modes of operation for people with impaired coordination of movements, hearing or vision disorders. In terms of a set of built-in features, this is one of the most powerful models, along with Apple technology. But usually during the test you skip this menu (it appears on the first boot), and then you don’t go there. However, another non-trivial function appeared in it, this is a baby monitor. You can put the phone next to the child, and then he will catch his cry, and then the camera flashes will inform you about it. Since my children have already grown up, I could not test this function in practice. The phone does not respond to the recorded crying of the baby, and if you want to see how Murtazin howls, then watch the video below - this device also did not respond to my howling. This does not mean at all that the baby monitor does not work, but most likely it is useless.

It just so happened historically - simply due to the fact that Korea has recently become a developed and high-tech country - that Samsung has always been in the role of catching up, whichever product line you take. And she always professed the approach “we will overtake and overtake”, and, as a rule, not so much in the sense of “we have better”, but that “we have more”. Whether this is good or bad is an open question, but this approach has always worked and eventually allowed Samsung to become one of the largest and most influential companies in the complex and changeable high-tech market.

The Koreans themselves seem to be still at a loss about this and do not fully understand what to do. Because it’s one thing to be successful and dynamic “number two”, and quite another to try to orchestrate the market, come up with new ideas, develop hitherto non-existent directions and stuff like that. It cannot be said that Samsung is not trying to do this - they are even trying. But so far, with varying success: Korean inventions are often very artificial.

Apparently, Samsung decided to slow down a little with the usual quantitative approach. It’s not that it’s completely abandoned - of course, in the Galaxy S5 there is a certain amount of “bigger”, “higher” and “more often”, but it still feels like an attempt to do some serious work on the bugs: to do not only “a lot”, but also "Okay".

⇡ Appearance and ergonomics

Design is a delicate matter. When it comes to the company's products, which are sold in millions of copies - and therefore, obviously, a huge number of people really like it, then everything is quite complicated. Here it is necessary to speak about design carefully: either good or nothing. Otherwise, there will be plenty of people who are indignant at value judgments. So about the aesthetic component, sorry, this time we just keep silent and focus on the facts. The facts are as follows: compared to the Galaxy S4, the new smartphone has become more square in shape, has acquired a corrugation on the metallic rim, the back panel is now decorated with a leatherette coating, and the dimensions have grown significantly. In the end, the S5 looks more like the Galaxy Note 3 than the Galaxy S4. Is that instead of a "line" on the back - "perforation".

Structurally, the S5 does not differ at all from all previous Samsung devices of a serious price category. Inside the magnesium frame, which plays the role of a strong and rigid frame, outside - exclusively plastic "kit". Either the plastic panels in the S5 have become a little thicker than in the S4, or the vibration isolation has been strengthened, but the “sonority” of the case, characteristic of the previous Samsung flagship, has seriously decreased. The case still vibrates when tapped, but much less noticeably.

The main innovation of the Galaxy S5 is the appearance of protection against moisture and dust. Koreans have already tried their hand at this genre, but earlier separate models of smartphones were created for experiments. In the "normal", "basic" flagship, Samsung uses this feature for the first time.

Moisture and dust protection is implemented according to the IP67 class. It was not without a marketing ploy: in the eyes of an uninformed person, IP67 is obviously more and “better” than IP58, which Sony claims for its flagships. In fact, this is not at all the case: the fact is that the Ingress Protection rating (the same IP abbreviation) consists of two numbers that are independent of each other. The first digit speaks of dust protection and only about it - accordingly, in terms of water protection, the IP6x class is no better than IP5x.

The second distinguishing feature of the Galaxy S5 is the presence of a fingerprint sensor. Like Apple, the sensor is built into the only physical button on the front. But it works in a completely different way: you can turn on the iPhone with a button and, holding your finger on it for a split second, unlock the smartphone. In the Samsung Galaxy S5, these actions are divided into two independent operations: you must first turn on the smartphone, and then slide the registered finger from the mark on the display to the sensor.

Fingerprint sensor built into the home button

The sensor works quite well - it recognizes the finger quite stably, even if you hold it at all sorts of unnatural angles, except that it doesn’t work upside down. But the process itself is less convenient than Apple's, and takes a little longer. However, even in this form it turns out much faster than with entering a password or a pattern of dots. Additional actions can be tied to the fingerprint sensor - up to the authorization of transactions in PayPal.

There is only one "loud" speaker in the Samsung Galaxy S5, it is located at the back. Sounds pretty nice and very loud

However, it should be borne in mind that, as in the case of the iPhone, they have already learned how to bypass protection: for this, some actions must be taken, which are not exactly simple, but still by no means quantum mechanics. So it’s worth minimizing the risk: do not tie the most valuable and easily “monetized” logins-passwords like bank ones to “fingers”, and also use those fingers for identification, good prints from which, most likely, will not remain on the glass of the front panel - the little finger or unnamed.

The third unusual feature of the Samsung Galaxy S5 is the built-in heart rate sensor. It is located in a small niche on the back of the case, the camera flash is placed in the same niche. The sensor is a pair of elements: a diode that illuminates the finger, and a simple camera that reads the pulsation.

Due to the protected design, the body has grown seriously. The display at the same time increased purely formally - by 0.1 inches. So there is no question of some new level of comfort when working with the screen, but you have to reach for the necessary elements much further. Visually, the Galaxy S5 does not give the impression of a large device - the shape greatly smoothes the dimensions - but in fact it almost caught up with the Xperia Z1. And it greatly overtook the LG G2, equipped with a larger screen.

However, this is the problem with most modern flagships: they are all too big. We are already used to this: we have long learned to stretch our fingers to such distances that it was difficult to imagine before, as well as quickly intercept the tubes from a comfortable grip into one that makes it easier to reach the button with your finger.

⇡ Specifications

⇡ Hardware and communications

In past years, Samsung flagships first appeared with their own Exynos processors, and only then, due to the special wishes of American mobile operators, did versions on Qualcomm chips come out. The turning point occurred at the launch of the Galaxy Note 3: both Exynos and Qualcomm Snapdragon versions were announced for this model at the same time.

For the Galaxy S5, the version (or rather, “versions” - there are quite a lot of them for different markets) on American processors will become the main one. Modifications on Exynos also exist, but already as secondary-auxiliary ones, for some special markets - it is not yet clear for which ones, they have not yet gone on sale. One way or another, the SM-G900F version equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor with the uncomplicated model name MSM8974AC v3 is currently relevant on the Russian market.

The American chipmaker introduced a fair amount of confusion to its lineup earlier this year, so it makes sense to provide a table that shows the differences between different Qualcomm SoCs.

So, MSM8974AC v3 is the most powerful Qualcomm chip in existence today. It is still quad-core and 32-bit - the Krait-400 architecture is used, working with the ARMv7 instruction set. But compared to the “regular” 800, the new version is noticeably overclocked: the maximum frequency of both the computing cores themselves and the graphics adapter built into the processor is higher, the chip can work with faster memory, even the ISP, the unit responsible for working with cameras, is overclocked .

In addition, new versions of Qualcomm's flagship chips have added support for a faster interface for connecting eMMC 5.0 flash memory, as well as support for two SIM cards in Dual SIM Dual Active (DSDA) mode. The latter, however, is not relevant for our version of the Galaxy S5 - there is only one SIM card in it, in the “micro” format.

The amount of RAM has not changed compared to that in the Galaxy S4 and is still 2 GB. The type of memory, apparently, is the same as in the Galaxy Note 3 - LPDDR3-1600. As for the flash drive, there are versions with both 16 GB of internal memory (of which about 12 GB are available), and with 32. Of course, microSD cards are supported, Samsung prefers not to limit the user in their desire to expand the storage capacity.

By and large, everything is the same with communication: the Snapdragon 801 has the same MDM9x25 modem as the Snapdragon 800, which can work with any existing networks of the second and third generations, and also supports operation in LTE category 4 networks. Support for faster networks LTE Cat. 6 (recall that in Moscow such a network is already operating within the Garden Ring) will have to wait until the next generation of the modem, MDM9x35. Moreover, at first this modem will be external, and only by the release of Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 will it move to the SoC.

As for the RF part, everything is more interesting here: the Samsung Galaxy S5 uses a new WTR1625L transceiver equipped with a WFR1620 companion chip, which is an additional receiver and is designed to implement carrier frequency aggregation technology. The Galaxy S5 also has a QFE1100 chip responsible for Envelope Tracking technology. All this additional equipment in theory allows you to increase the data transfer rate and reduce power consumption.

Connectors for microsim cards and memory cards in the Samsung Galaxy S5 are located in a "sandwich". And the NFC antenna is built into the battery

With a set of supported ranges, alas, everything is not as great as we would like. Samsung prefers to demarcate markets, including support for cellular networks. This is good for merchants in local markets, but not very pleasant for those who travel frequently and want to use fast data transfer in any part of the world. SM-G900F is the European version of the device, and in Europe there will be no problems with communication. However, it is not as well suited for other regions: many popular 3G/4G bands in the US are not supported. Not to mention China.

The micro-USB 3.0 connector is hidden under a flap. Each time you have to open it to charge, the ability to connect a docking station is not provided, but you can purchase a back panel with wireless charging - of course, for extra money

For a wired connection, a micro-USB 3.0 interface with MHL support is used. Wireless interfaces - a complete set: the user has a dual-band adapter Wi-Fi 802.11a / b / g / n / ac, and Bluetooth 4.0, and NFC. There is also an infrared port - so that the smartphone can work as a universal remote control. Among other things, this can be useful if you want to turn down the volume of the TV in some public place.

The Qualcomm iZat Gen8B module built into the processor is responsible for working with navigation satellite networks, exactly the same as in the Snapdragon 800. Recall that in addition to the GPS and GLONASS systems that have already become standard, this module and the WTR1625L transceiver already mentioned above also support the Chinese Beidou. Moreover, the Samsung Galaxy S5 seems to be the first "global" smartphone for which Beidou support is declared in the official specifications and is actually implemented - for the first time we managed to catch Chinese satellites on SGS5.

Samsung Galaxy S5 GPS/GLONASS/Beidou receiver test. Left to right: 15 seconds after launch; one minute after the start; in room

Navigation works very quickly: even without access to the Network, the Galaxy S5 literally in a matter of seconds finds a dozen and a half satellites and confidently determines the coordinates. It's the fastest navigation smartphone we've ever seen - the speed is amazing.