Many of us didn’t know what to expect with the Galaxy S 4 Active Release. The original Galaxy s4 was a big hit with all its wonderful features.
The Galaxy Active promises most of the features from the original S 4, but with all the features it also offers to the water proof and dust proof. (That’s what they mean by IP67 certified). So when’s the galaxy we were looking for how it should be under water for the most part. Here are the specs layed out.
Samsung Galaxy S 4 Active Specifications:
Display: 5 inch
Processor / RAM: Qualcomm Snapdragon quad-core 1.9 Ghz Processor / 2 GB RAM
Memory: 16 GB – MicroSD Expansion Slot
Cameras: 8 Megapixel Camera / 2 megapixel front facing camera
Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.0 / Wi-Fi a/b/g/n / NFC / GPS /
Battery: 2,600 mAh (removable) battery
Samsung Galaxy S 4 Active – Body and Feel
When looking at the phone you notice some differences from the original Galaxy S 4. It doesn’t have a more rugged look but you do see three physical buttons. The phone is more squared shape than the original. It’s not as luxurious looking as the original. But I fell quickly for the teal color.
It doesn’t look like a rugged phone. You won’t see extra bumpers and rubber for protection. There is no special texture for gripping. It looks like there is, but sadly no. It is still less slippery than the original Galaxy. The extra weight of the S4 Active helps maneuver handling especially under water.
Samsung Galaxy S 4 Active Waterproofing
What makes phone waterproof is the back cover you have to be extra careful with the back cover and make sure that it is sealed tight. There are even special directions on the back cover on how to properly seal the device. So what can be active do that active can go up to a meter underwater for up to 30 minutes . The active is a bit taller than the original S4, but it remains quite slim. The buttons on the Galaxy Active are a bit bigger and a lot easier to press and maneuver .
Galaxy Active Display and Camera Differences
When looking at the 5 inch screen you might see the colors are a bit different than the original Galaxy s4 that is because the active is using an LCD display. These displays are better off outdoors and in sunlight.
As you know, you lose 5 megapixels from the original S4 to the Active S 4. I didn’t see many differences between the original and the active in quality. A big difference that I noticed because it’s a feature I use on the original is the lack of dual shot camera. I’m assuming you might be able to pick up on these differences if you’re doing large sized printing or precise photo editing.
The most important difference is in the camera obviously I’ll aqua mode is to take picture under water. With optimal you cannot use the touchscreen the volume rocker the shooter button. While Aqua Mode is definitely a perk, it is very hard to focus on the water since I have no focus and it’s very hard to see the subject of your picture under water. I personally like the idea of having a physical camera button but I was not used to using the volume rocker as the camera button.
So how big is the difference in quality from the originals 13 megapixel camera to the galaxy active 8 megapixel camera? Not very noticeable. Picture still came out right with natural daylight.
Galaxy S 4 Active – Call Quality
As you know from all my previous smartphone reviews I barely call or use voice. But the voice on this one is pretty good doesn’t sound robotic or with noise in the background. Speakerphone was quite loud. After the HTC One’s BoomSound speakers, other speakers won’t ever be the same, but the Galaxy Active’s speaker quality was quite impressive.
AT&T Wireless Service on the Galaxy S 4 Active
As always the places that I mostly frequent in New York which is Queens Midtown Manhattan and downtown Manhattan AT&T 4G LTE is pretty phenomenal. I don’t do speed test but I do things like downloading downloading songs and it goes pretty quickly almost instant . Websites loaded quickly I was able to do forms and changing from a mobile site to full websites on the phone was actually pretty good.
Check out the Samsung Galaxy S 4 Active for AT&T HERE: $199
Check out AT&T’s coverage maps HERE
Battery Life on the S4 Active
Battery life with decent it lasted me less than the whole day. The most it lasted me was 5 hours on a single charge. As always I carry an extra battery pack so battery life isn’t an issue for me. I think by now everyone should have an extra battery charger or battery pack with them it just makes sense. Smartphones are trying to pack in so many qualities that battery life takes a back seat to all the innovation and creativity offered.
Get Goin’ With the Samsung Galaxy S 4 Active?
You have to remember that because the phone says active it means that it’s waterproof and dustproof and definitely not a shock resistance if you look at the phone you should be able to tell that from the beginning so its not a phone that could be then heavy drops and heavy hits. But in the future more smartphones should be made with this build.
I really do think that if Samsung had come out with this model before the original, they would’ve blown all the competition out of the water, no contest. We use our smartphones in all settings. From the kitchen to the bathtub, we’re taking a big risk by bringing our phones near liquid.
I give major props to Samsung for taking the initiative again in taking smartphone innovation in another direction. I’m sure there are more improvements to come, but this is the first time a waterproof and dust-proof phone doesn’t look like it’s made for construction area or lacks features. If you’re addicted to your phone, spill things on your phone, have children who spill anything and everything on your phone, you should definitely consider the Galaxy S 4 Active.
Would you trade in your original Galaxy S 4 for the Galaxy S 4 Active? Is it worth the changes?
