The Phablet wars: Samsung Galaxy Note vs. LG Optimus Vu

The Phablet market is finally about to get two of its pioneering products as well as commercial competitors. Yes, we are talking about the two Korean giants playing it out in this relatively nascent electronic realm. The devices in question are of course, Samsung's Galaxy Note (which is already released) and LG's Optimus Vu (which is about to be released by next month).

Phablet Wars

Posing as the convenient fusion of phones and tablets, both of the LTE capable contraptions unabashedly exhibit their 'transitional' features. In fact, both of them are powered by Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), with their respective companies touting their upgrade to the celebrated Android 4.0 (ICS) OS in a few months. However, beyond the obvious similarities, there must be some areas where one overshadows the other. So, without further ado, let us assess some of the comparative attributes these phablets bring forth to the consumer's table.

Processor

When it comes to processing power, both of the devices are armed to the teeth, as per the current trend. The Samsung Galaxy Note features a 1.4 Ghz dual core ARM Cortex Exynos A9 processor, along with 1GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage memory. On the other hand, the LG Optimus Vu is infused with a 1.5 Ghz Snapdragon dual core processor, complimented by the same 1GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage memory.

Winner

In a few months, we will certainly witness the advent of powerful quad core processors, with the more boisterous Nvidia Tegra 3 about to make its splash in the mobile device field. But, until then, the dual core LG Optimus Vu holds a slight edge over Samsung Galaxy Note with its more clocked speed (at 1.5GHz, over 1.4GHz of Note). However, beyond the number game, both of them should give almost similar performance, when it comes to usage.

Camera

A far cry from iPad 2, both the Galaxy Note and Optimus Vu have rear auto-focus camera systems that are notched up to 8MP with LED flash. However, when we take the less celebrated front camera into consideration, the Galaxy Note leads the Optimus Vu with its 2MP system, as compared to 1.3MP of the latter.

Winner

From a user's perspective, both of the phablets exhibit a well to do camera attribute. Of course, as a 'winner', we have to hand it down to Galaxy Note, with its marginally better video calling features.

Battery

In this regard, the LG Optimus Vu has a 2080 mAh Lithium ion battery, while Samsung Galaxy Note is implanted with a 2500 mAh Lithium ion battery.

Winner

Since, we are comparing the relatively untested facet of battery (in phablets), we have to go through the solid numbers, as per their respective specs. Adhering to such a scope, the Galaxy Note once again emerges as the winner. However, as far as their 'transitional' features go, both them exhibit a more robust power train as compared to their smartphone cousins (like the 1432 mAh battery found in iPhone 4S, or the 1650 mAh battery found in Samsung Galaxy S II).

Picture Gallery

Samsung Galaxy Note vs. LG Optimus Vu Samsung Galaxy Note vs. LG Optimus Vu

Samsung Galaxy Note vs. LG Optimus Vu

Display

Reverting back to figures, the Galaxy Note has a display of 5.3 inches Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen (285 ppi pixel density) with 800 x 1280 pixels resolution. In comparison, the Optimus Vu has a 5 inch HD-IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen display (256 ppi pixel density) with 768 x 1024 pixels resolution.

Winner

Samsung Galaxy Note leads LG Optimus Vu in almost every display aspect. Even beyond numbers, the Optimus Vu is wider in appearance with a 'boxier' feel to the corners. This can make it ergonomically inferior to the curvier Galaxy Note, when it comes to handling of the phablets.

User Interface

Both of the devices are Android based, with the 2.3 Gingerbread version acting as their respective operating system. However, as far as tradition goes, the Galaxy Note will be ingrained with Samsung' very own TouchWiz 4.0 interface, while Optimus Vu will have the default look of Android.

Winner

It is very difficult to judge a winner in this case, as the type of UI preferred boils down to personal taste. Still, we would go with Galaxy Note, given our time tested confidence in TouchWiz.

The verdict:

So, at the end of the day, we can still see the Galaxy Note leading Optimus Vu on many of the specs related considerations. However, when it comes to the practicality of usage, the Optimus Vu clearly remains constrained within the figures on paper. In this regard, only time could determine the success of the upcoming phablet from LG. But, still going by the current scope, the Galaxy Note does exhibit a sleeker design with a slight edge in somewhat better attributes.