If you're looking for a new phone, *the Samsung Galaxy S5 is tops,* according to _Consumer Reports_ magazine.
If you already like your iPhone, you might still prefer it's familiarity. Just like you wouldn't sell your car just because a new one has better gas mileage. On the other hand, just like the conclusion of a car's lease provides an opportunity to reevaluate transportation alternatives and new models, the 2-year postpaid cellphone contracts popular in the US mean people often reassess their equipment needs.
[My extensive comments below are based on my own experience. *My apologies if it sounds like an advertising pitch, but the device is really *_*that good*_*.* Plus any good marketing writer would be more concise about benefits, instead of providing such a long list of features!
Also, I have NOT received any compensation for this review. I only get the benefit of influencing others to share my techie views about Android and Samsung. -- Evan]
*The Samsung Galaxy S5 has a bright, full HD screen (1920x1080)* and a 16MP camera, and can *take UHD/4K video for your *_*next*_* TV*. It can even shoot video and photos of you (the smartphone owner) and other people *from the front and back cameras simultaneously*, creating a picture-in-picture video.
While *a drop into the sink voids the iPhone's legendary warranty, the Galaxy S5 is waterproof to 3 feet and dustproof (IP67 rating).* It also doesn't suffer from "bend gate" or "antenna gate" problems.
Its *built-in infrared (IR) transmitter means you can use it to control your TV, cable box or even air conditioner*. It has an NFC chip, so you can use it to *pay for goods at credit card terminals* which support GooglePay/ApplePay. You can even buy NFC tags to trigger certain actions when you put the phone by your desk, nightstand, or car console.
Its battery life is good. To make it better, it offers *Power Saving mode* which can optionally slow the Quad-Core 2+ GHz CPU or set the screen to grayscale. An *Ultra Power Saver mode even allows it to run up to a week on a single battery charge*, by shutting off all services except emergency essentials such as voice calls, text messaging and flashlight. I have seen the Ultra Power Saver mode stretch out a low battery's life for hours. Incidentally, *the S5 has a removeable battety you can swap*, or even install a cordless-charging cover. It also takes *microSD cards up to 128 GB*, and (with an accessory) can read other USB devices like thumb drives. You can also *mirror its screen to a PC or newer Samsung TV*.
*For anti-theft, it has a "kill switch" so you can make it impossible for a thief to activate it if it gets stolen.* This is something the attorneys general for New York and California have demanded for all phones, even though other phones might not offer it yet. It includes a fingerprint sensor, and already supports Bluetooth-unlocking when close to nearby approved devices (if desired), even with Android 4.4.4 KitKat. It even supports *Samsung Knox, which allows you to separate your phone into a "work zone" which only sees work data and apps and a "personal zone" which only sees personal stuff.* Samsung Knox requires your workplace to use a server-based email system such as Microsoft Exchange.
After reading all this, if you're an iPhone owner, you might be glad that *the S5 also includes tools to help iPhone owners migrate their data to Google/Gmail/Calendar/etc* if they haven't done so alresdy. After that, however, your Google data will work with any later Android phone too.
[Below are my comments about _Consumer Reports_ magazine, whose reviews are more objective than the gushing description I just posted above! -- Evan]
Founded over 70 years ago, _Consumer Reports_ magazine accepts NO advertising and forbids companies from citing its recommendations (even to the point of suing them to enforce this). Its revenues are based on subscriptions to its print magazine and website, and posthumous donations.
Their reviews are based on purchases by ordinary people and readers, so vendors cannot provide them with special "loaner" products "tuned" to get peak performance. While CR might have some bias in favor of energy efficiency, practicality and economical prices, they are not predisposed to favor any particular product manufacturer. In particular, they are willing to recognize when a new product's quality is worse or better than a previous year's model they recommended.
[References:
_Consumer Reports_ story cited on PhoneArena website, on January 1, 2015.
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Samsung-Galaxy-S5-tops-Consumer-Reports-latest-smartphone-ratings_id64274
Also mentioned by Christopher Gaul, on Google+
https://plus.google.com/106460272334827467471/posts/7T1iNQfs3vG
]
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