After the success of its flagship, Samsung has followed the same strategy as last year and opted for the launch of a reduced version of the Samsung Galaxy S4 . The Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini promises the same user experience as its older brother, but boasting a much more compact chassis and not so advanced features. 4.3 inch, processor dual core or chamber eight megapixels are some performance most prominent; as are the smart functions it equips. We have tested the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini, this is what we found.
screen
4.3 inches is a more than acceptable size for a mid-range smartphone. Its surface is large enough to view content clearly and without feeling the claustrophobic effect of smaller screens, but at the same time it is very comfortable to operate with one hand. The screen of the little one from Samsung looks very good, the Super AMOLED technology does not disappoint and offers us very sharp and colorful images, perhaps a little saturated as we are used to. The resolution is qHD -that is, 960 x 540 pixels-, more than enough for the dimensions of the panel.
Samsung has included the system known as Adapt Display and adjusts, not only the brightness, but also the hue or saturation according to the light conditions that it detects through the front sensor and the task we are doing. Thanks to this system it looks pretty good when we are in full sunlight and the same happens when we look at it from the side.
Design and handling
Samsung has literally traced the design of its flagship but in a more compact chassis, almost as if it had been reduced. The first impression is that it is smaller than expected, especially for users who come from much larger smartphones. However, the effect of the size is also due to the fact that the screen is very close to the edges, so it seems smaller. The feeling when holding it in the hand is very good, the terminal is light , thinand can be operated seamlessly with one hand. Likewise, we hardly notice when we carry it in our pocket and sometimes it is a bit difficult to find it in our bag if we have not been careful to store it in a compartment.
Samsung continues to bet on a polycarbonate chassis with this model, a very resistant and light type of plastic. The front part is covered in resistant glass and maintains the same button configuration as all the Galaxy series terminals: the home button in the center (in this case it is finished with a silver border) and the two capacitive keys to open menus and back to the sides. At the top, to the right of the Samsung logo, are the proximity and ambient light sensors, next to it is the front camera. The volume buttons are on the left side and on the right is the power and sleep key. The back is finished with a woven effectwhich gives it a certain resemblance to carbon fiber. As always , the housing is detachable from the inside can remove the battery and insert the SIM or memory card MicroSD .
Photo and video camera
The results obtained by the camera of the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini are very good, much better than in other terminals of the same range, but above all we liked the many options offered by the Camera application. We remember that the rear sensor of the terminal has eight megapixels and allows recording FullHD videos . The images obtained in bright light, eg at noon on sunny day, are crisp , colors are accurate and range of light and shadow is very varied(In the images we see that there are no very black areas or other very burned areas) The night mode also works well in moments when light is scarce , after capturing the image it processes it and eliminates the noise , the result is that the image appears much smoother, the bad thing is that it desaturates the colors a bit but it does not fade either. can ask for more. The videos are also very crisp and colorful, image stabilization minimizes shaking, but as long as they are not very violent.
As we said, we have been pleasantly surprised by the functions of the camera. The modes are very varied and we find from the classic automatic , the aforementioned night mode, sports mode for moving objects, panoramic and HDR . Within this section we can also choose other more complex shooting modes such as Best face that allows us to shoot five photos to then choose the best faces, Best Photo that chooses the best of a series of eight, Beauty Face applies a filter to soften the skin and also continuous shooting that shoots a burst of20 images in a row.
Power and autonomy
The Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini mounts inside a dual-core Snapdragon 400 processor at 1.7 gigahertz clock speed, and is also supported by 1.5 Gb of RAM. The general operation is very fluid and all the animations are reproduced smoothly and without the annoying jumps of less powerful mobiles, quite the opposite. The compact version of the Samsung Galaxy S4 is also up to the task in this regard and ensures a smooth running of all its applications. In general, the terminal responds very well in situations in which we demand more resources, for example when opening several applications at the same timeWe did not notice any type of slowdown -not so much in temperature, and the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini heats up when we use it for a long time , but nothing alarming.
The Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini has a 1,900 milliamp battery , a capacity that in principle is enough to withstand a couple of days without going through the plug, but that if we give a moderate use to the terminal and we are connected to WiFi networks . If we give a more intensive use downloading applications, using mobile networks and other more complex tasks (for example the GPS) the load reaches quite low levels at the end of the day. In our case, we charged the battery in the morning and, after a day using the mobile connection, at night we already had to use the charger.
Operating system and functions
Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean is the version with which Samsung has vitaminized its mini-flagship, one of the most current deliveries of the moment and which ensures us to be up to date with all the news. As always, Samsung adorns the system with its Touchwiz interface , which is also practically identical to that of its older brother. We see that it has the same animations when unlocking the screen and that its Settings menu is organized by tabs and not in a list as in previous versions. The appearance of the interface is the same as always and it has the brand's own widgets , which can also be placed on the lock screen.
Smart functions are the standard of Samsung mobiles and the Galaxy S4 Mini also includes some of them such as Smart Stay, a system that detects when we are looking at the screen and keeps it on. It also allows you to accept calls by bringing the phone to your ear or controlling the terminal with the palm of your hand. It also has other lifestyle-focused features like S Travel that recommends destinations around the world, the Story Album photo album, the S Translator translator and the S Voice voice assistant .
Feedback
The Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini delivers on its promise and manages to emulate its older brother's user experience quite well. Both the design and the user interface are traced and the handling is practically the same. The chassis is more compact than expected , but it is not a negative since the screen is quite generous and everything is clear. We are facing a very balanced device that bets on more advanced components than other similar mobiles, something that is reflected in the final price. The camera and the screenThey are the two most satisfactory points of its entire technical profile, but the rest of the data is not far behind. In short, it is the perfect smartphone for users who are looking for the latest functions but do not want a device that is too broad.
Data sheet
Standard | GSM / GPRS / EDGE: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz 3G (HSPAï¼ ‹42Mbps): 850/900/1900/2100 MHz 4G (LTE Cat 3 100 / 50Mbps): up to 6 different band sets |
Weight and measurements | 124.6 x 61.3 x 8.94 millimeters and 107 grams Dual SIM version 108 grams |
Memory | 8 GB of internal memory (5Gb available) Expandable up to 64GB with microSD cards 1.5 GB RAM |
screen | Super AMOLED capacitive multi-touch 4.3 inches (540 x 960 pixels) 16 million colors Samsung Adapt Display Technology |
Camera | 8 megapixel sensor Autofocus LED flashes Functions: Sound & Shot, night mode, Best Photo, Best Face, Beauty Face, HDR, Panorama. sports mode, continuous shooting, geo-tagging, face detector. Video recording in FullHD 1080p at 30 fps Secondary front camera 1.9 megapixels |
Multimedia | Play music, video and photos Supported formats: MPEG4, H.264, H.263, VC-1, VP8, WMV7 / 8, Sorenson Spark, MP3, AMR-NB / WB, AAC / AACï¼ ‹/ eAAC+, WMA, Vorbis (OGG), FLAC , apt-X Group Play: share music, photos, m documents and games. Samsung Adapt Sound Technology |
Controls and connections | Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean operating system Samsung TouchWiz Nature 1.7 GHz dual-core processor Mobile Internet: 3G / LTE (depending on markets) Wifi GPS + Glonass Bluetooth 4.0 NFC (LTE version only) Infrared port MicroUSB Headphone minijack Sensors: Accelerometer, Proximity, Ambient Light, Gyroscope, Compass Functions: Story Album, S Translator, S Travel, S Health, S Voice, Samsung KNOX, Google services. |
Autonomy | 1,900 mAh battery |
Price | 400 euros (approx.) |
+ info | Samsung |