Review and tests of Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition GT-I9505. Successful facelift of the flagship. Black Lord: review and testing of the Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition smartphone Samsung Galaxy S4 black phone

The Korean giant Samsung needs no introduction - it is now one of the leading players in the electronics market. And including one of the leaders in the mobile segment. It is not surprising that in recent years the release of each new flagship Samsung smartphone model has turned into a whole event.

Today our guest is the company’s previous top-end device – the Galaxy S4. Last year, we started testing mobile devices quite late, and at first we decided not to review the device presented six months earlier. But on the eve of the release of the Galaxy S5 in early 2014, Samsung decided to stir up interest in its current sales locomotive and introduced its special Black Edition. Formally, this is a new product, but for us it is an excellent opportunity to fill this gap.

What is interesting about the Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition?

It received a “leather-like” back cover, borrowed from its “big brother” – the Note 3 model. In addition, it is based on the GT-I9505 modification, based on a Qualcomm processor, and not Samsung Exynos. Therefore, in particular, the smartphone supports LTE.

Along with it, another modification was presented – Galaxy S4 La Fleur. This feminine device is designed for the fair half of humanity.

But, since the March 8th holiday has already passed, we will study the capabilities of these smartphones, which differ only in design, using the example of the Black Edition.

In both cases, for about 20,000 rubles, we are offered a device with a 4.99" screen and Full HD resolution (1920 x 1080) based on the Snapdragon 600 APQ8064AB SoC, and with 2 GB of RAM on board. Here are the full characteristics of the Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition.

Specifications

Let's see what this smartphone is.

Packaging and accessories

Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition comes in a small, very stylishly designed black box made of thick cardboard.

On the front side of the package is the manufacturer's logo, on the back there is a short list of its main features and a list of included accessories. Everything is in Russian.

Having opened the box, the first thing we see is the smartphone itself with a nicely designed shipping sticker on the screen:

Complete accessories are located below, under the divider. Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition comes with:

• Charger;
• Micro-USB cable;
• Quick user guide and warranty card;
• Stereo headset with replaceable ear pads.

This is not to say that the equipment is particularly rich, but everything you need is there. All accessories, like the smartphone itself, are designed in black.

Appearance and design

Samsung Galaxy S4 Black is made in a classic form factor - a candy bar with a touch screen. The design is typical of the latest models of the Korean company (and at the same time - the masses of Chinese). The smartphone is immediately recognizable as another Samsung.

Dimensions are the same as the regular Galaxy S4: 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9 mm. The same applies to the weight of 130 g. Neither the dimensions nor the weight are record-breakingly small for a given screen diagonal, but the smartphone is still in the group of leaders in terms of these indicators. Due to this, and also thanks to the convenient shape of the back cover, it is as convenient to use as a five-inch “shovel” can be.

But the main thing is that the Black Edition received a back cover that imitates leather. From a distance, it really does look like real leather, giving the device a certain style. Up close and to the touch it becomes clear that this is a special soft plastic. But in any case, this cover looks better than the gloss of the regular Samsung Galaxy S4.

And an additional advantage is that the device does not slip in the hand at all, and there are practically no fingerprints left on its back surface.

The device, as the name of the smartphone suggests, is available only in black.

The front panel is covered with Corning Gorilla Glass 3. It has an oleophobic coating - fingerprints remain, but are easy to clean.

On the front side at the top there are: earpiece, light and proximity sensors, front camera and LED indicator.

Its light bulb is bright, and (unlike the latest HTC smartphones, for example) is perfectly visible from any angle.

The indicator can be configured using standard tools; you can select under which events it will turn on. For example, if a new notification is received when the screen is off, the LED blinks blue at intervals of ~1.5 seconds. On Samsung's previous flagship, the Galaxy S3, the indicator lighted up too rarely. It's nice to see that some manufacturers pay attention to detail and, at least in new models, correct even minor shortcomings of their products.

At the bottom, the last block that is standard for devices of the Korean company is a block of two touch keys “Menu” and “Back”, and one hardware “Home”. The sensitivity of the keys is excellent, the brightness of the backlight (it is white here) is sufficient.

On the back of the smartphone at the top there is a thirteen-megapixel main camera eye and a single LED flash. And below them is a large shiny manufacturer’s logo.

Closer to the lower left corner of the back cover there is a small grille behind which the external speaker is hidden.

On the right side of the Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition there is a power/lock button.

On the left is a single volume rocker.

The 3.5 mm jack and IR port are on the top, the microphone and Micro-USB port are on the bottom of the device.

To disassemble the smartphone, just carefully lift the cover by the special recess near the power key. Inside there is access to the battery and slots: SIM (micro-format) and for a memory card (MicroSD).

Thanks to the narrow bezels, the lightness of the Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition and its shape, it fits well in the palm of your hand. If desired, it is quite possible to operate it with one hand.

The build quality is excellent: not a hint of play or creaking in the body or lid. Here, second-tier manufacturers still have a lot to learn.

This concludes the inspection, time to move on to the test. Let's start, as usual, with the screen.

Samsung launched a new designer smartphone on the Russian market in mid-February - Samsung Galaxy Black Edition. This model was a logical continuation of the Samsung Galaxy La Fleur presented a little earlier. As you might guess, it is based on a flagship smartphone, differing in appearance with a slant of black color. We present the first detailed test of this model online.

And although in fact the changes affected only the finishing of the case, at the end we get the Samsung Galaxy S4 in the form in which we wanted to see it at the time of the presentation of this flagship. The Galaxy S4 i9505 model with LTE support was chosen as the basis; fourth generation networks are gaining popularity, and support for this technology distinguishes the model from its competitor and the original device. The place of the flagship device after the MWC 2014 exhibition was transferred to the Samsung Galaxy S5, but the relevance of the Galaxy S4 will remain for a long time.

Availability of Samsung Galaxy Black Edition

At the time of testing, the average cost of the Samsung Galaxy Black Edition, according to the Yandex.Market service, was 21,990 rubles. The original GT-I9505 will cost the same price.

Equipment

In the kit, the buyer receives: a micro USB cable, a 1A network adapter, a headset, replaceable ear pads, instructions and a warranty card.

Appearance

The dimensions and shape of the smartphone remain the same, they are 69.8 x 136.6 x 7.9 mm and weigh 130 grams.

The changes affected the back cover; it was borrowed from the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. It looks more coherent and harmonious.

Let me remind you that the surface of this lid imitates leather; if you don’t look closely, it really looks like leather trim. Up close, the stylized seams and protruding rim give themselves away.

Now let's look at the buttons and ports on the case. Right: power button. On top there is an infrared port and a 3.5 mm audio jack.

On the left is the volume rocker and on the bottom there is a micro USB connector.

There is no point in talking about creaking and play in the body; everything was done at the highest level.

Display

IN Samsung Galaxy S4 PenTile is used, as in S3 (a pixel built from subpixels). This technology causes widespread controversy among experts; a number of “supermen” and “spider-men” manage to discern these subpixels. Although, how is this possible, if it is beyond the capabilities of the human eye, can only be explained by the presence of superpowers.

Another subject of controversy is Super AMOLED; it is often criticized for its unnaturalness, oversaturation and brightness of light. I can assume that this is a problem for those who do not actually use devices with this type of screen. In the settings you can change the color rendering and make the screen dimmer and more natural. But, unfortunately, it is no longer possible to make colors brighter, more contrast and more saturated on other types of screens. Flexibility Samsung Galaxy S4 manifests itself in this as well.

The advantages in terms of the screen are not surprising; Samsung produces and develops displays independently. If in the case of Samsung Galaxy S4 and Galaxy S3, at first glance the difference is faintly noticeable, but when compared with competitors it is obvious. I can compare objectively with a number of flagship devices; it was possible to use these devices.

Filling

The user has 9 GB available for storing personal data and installing software. The memory can be expanded using micro SD cards, but transferring programs to a memory card using standard means will not work.

Antutu

Vellamo

3D Rating

Battery Samsung Galaxy S4

Smartphone Samsung Galaxy S4 received a more capacious battery - 2600 mAh Li-Ion. At the same time, the increase did not come at the expense of the thickness of the case. The power saving mode allows you to increase the battery charging time by about 20%, just like the S3.

But by turning off the sensors, you can approximately double the operating time without recharging. The result is the same design; you can get a productive smartphone, packed with sensors and capabilities (at the expense of autonomy), or a fast device that can work for a long time at the expense of functionality.

Communication Samsung Galaxy S4

Camera Samsung Galaxy S4

Externally, the camera interface remains the same. You can configure basic settings. There are fewer configuration functions, or to be more precise, they are hidden deeper in the menu. It has become more difficult to access exposure and white balance. The new modes that deserve the most attention are: retouch, night, sports, panorama, eraser, rich tones, live photo, series, sound and photo, best face, best photo, retouching. Eraser mode allows you to remove moving objects from a photo. It can be both people and cars in the background. A series of 5 pictures is taken, after which all objects in motion are highlighted in a pink area. As a result, all these objects are cut out from the image as if they were not there. There will be fewer spoiled frames.

Finally, regarding the photo modes, you can note sound and photo. After taking a photo, you are prompted to record a sound file with a commentary on the photo. This may make it easier to edit photos in the future or make viewing more interactive. Such files can be transmitted along with the audio component. Nowadays there are more and more popular applications that one way or another involve publishing photos. One of the most popular, of course, is Instagram, new settings and modes will allow you to share really bright and lively pictures, the same iPhone has only one function - shooting without the possibility of detailed settings.

Software

Gesture control – allows you to scroll through pictures and text without touching the screen.

In reality, from the outside, such control looks “wonderful”. Using this device, it remained exotic for me, although the children quickly got used to it, and it gave them a “WoW” effect.

Story Album – the application allows you to create a thematic album in a couple of clicks. You can select the necessary photos, and they will be formatted as pages. This method is convenient for organizing trips or important events in your life. It is possible to post comments and inscriptions. If desired, such albums can even be printed as a classic album.

S-Health is one of the most striking applications. It combines functionality for athletes and people who care about their health. There is a temperature and humidity sensor, you can monitor the dynamics of changes in these indicators indoors.

Samsung Hub is an analogue of Google Play. You can download music, videos and books. The usefulness is questionable.

Knox – this functionality is unlikely to be needed by ordinary users; it is more likely for corporate use. When enabled, you can restrict access to files.

Video review of Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition

Results for Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition

The next flagship phone of the South Korean company has appeared – Samsung Galaxy S4. It offers a chance to further establish itself in the smartphone market, confirming its dominance among Android devices.

Samsung's new flagship improves on almost every aspect of the previous model, pairing more powerful hardware with a suite of new software features. The gadget received a bunch of new sensors, aiming to become an all-in-one tool.

Let us immediately note the main disadvantages that the device has in our opinion:

• the design began to gradually become outdated;
• externally, the smartphone looks worse than the aluminum HTC One or glass Sony Xperia Z;
• no FM radio;
• Video recording is slightly worse than in the Galaxy S3;
• The overall camera interface makes framing quite difficult.

Now let's move on to a more detailed review of the main characteristics, advantages and disadvantages of the new smartphone.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 comes with the standard set of accessories you'd expect in a box. This is an A/C adapter that needs to be used using the included microUSB cable, headphones that are incomparably better than the ones that came with the Galaxy S3. This time all accessories are painted white.

The new HS330 headphones are equipped with dual drivers that provide better high and low frequency sound reproduction.

The headphones have also changed the shape, material and size of the tip, making them more comfortable. The control buttons on the headset have also been improved compared to the Galaxy S3.

Now let's move on to the appearance. The dimensions of the Galaxy S4 are likely to be one of the biggest advancements, as the smartphone is the same height as its predecessor, but is 0.8mm narrower, 0.7mm thinner and 3 grams lighter. And this is all despite the screen increased by 0.2 inches, a more capacious battery, which remains removable. So, the dimensions of the phone are 136.6x69.8x7.9 mm, and the weight is 130 grams.

The gadget's screen is covered with new Gorilla Glass 3. This glass has a new composition and provides increased scratch resistance. And in fact, early tests showed that the Samsung Galaxy S4 is more difficult to scratch than the Galaxy S3.

The design has changed little when comparing the new product with its predecessor. The phone uses the same Hyperglazed finish, which, in our opinion, is a minus for the gadget, since when you hold the smartphone in your hands, you feel not a flagship device, but a plastic toy. In this it loses to HTC One and Sony Xperia Z.

This, however, does not mean that the Galaxy S4 looks worse than its predecessor. The new texture gives it a more serious and stylish appearance, and the back panel now looks different depending on the viewing angle.

Thin bezels left more space for the shiny screen, but more on that later. A thin body has a higher vibration level. We also note that now black color will be available from the very beginning of sales.

Note that the new product is easier to use than the Samsung Galaxy S3. It's also more comfortable to hold than the HTC One.

The Samsung smartphone has a lot of sensors scattered throughout the body, but the basic controls and their layout remain largely unchanged.

Under the display you will find the same three buttons as in the Galaxy S3 - touch-sensitive “Menu” and “Back”, as well as a mechanical “Home”.

There is additional functionality: a long press of the Menu button handles Google Now, while the Home button brings up the task switcher, and there are other options that are described in more detail in the instructions.

Above the display there is a speaker, a bunch of sensors and a 2.1-megapixel front camera. There's an LED indicator, a traditional ambient light sensor, and an IR gesture sensor that lets you control some apps like the web browser and music player.

On the left side of the Samsung Galaxy S4 there is a dual volume rocker, while the power/lock button is on the right. Unfortunately, although the camera has received a significant update, the control button is still missing. You can use the volume key to take a photo, but it won't completely replace the two-stage (point and shutter) button.

At the top end you can see a 3.5 mm headphone jack and an IR sensor, which allows you to use the smartphone as a remote control for household appliances. There is a pre-installed application that will allow you to control some devices.

The microUSB port on the bottom is used for data transfer and charging. It not only supports USB host, but also MHL 2.0, which makes it possible to output 3D Full HD video to TV without an external power source. Previously, you had to connect the charger, but now they got rid of it.

Also at the bottom is the main microphone.

On the back of the Samsung Galaxy S4 there is a 13-megapixel Full HD camera. Like the Galaxy S3, the LED flash is located nearby, but the speaker grille has been moved to the bottom left edge of the device.

Performance and Software

The Samsung Galaxy S4 that we have in our hands is equipped with a Snapdragon 600 chipset. We, of course, know that there will be a modification with an 8-core Exynos 5 Octa, but for now we will test the available version of the smartphone.

A gadget with 4 Krait cores clocked at 1.9 GHz, 2 GB of RAM and an Adreno 320 GPU should show excellent performance, in our opinion. Built-in memory - from 16 to 64 GB depending on the version, there is a slot for microSD cards. Operating system - Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean.

The South Korean company's device outperformed HTC One and Optimus G Pro in single-threaded (Benchmark Pi) and multi-threaded (LinPack) performance tests. Both of these phones use the same chipset, but only at 1.7 GHz.

Geekbench 2 is a cross-platform benchmark that compares the Galaxy S4 with the iPhone 5, which performed twice as poorly. The HTC One and LG Optimus G Pro also lagged behind the test device, although we should note that they are running an older version of Android 4.1.2. Let us remind you that the new Samsung flagship has an operating system – Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean.

Now let's move on to compound tests. In AnTuTu, our gadget was again at the top, and in Quadrant the difference between it and Optimus G Pro is very small. Although HTC One lagged behind significantly here.

Now let's test the graphics. In GLBenchmark 2.5 in 1080p off-screen mode, our smartphone confidently won. The Galaxy S4 also topped the Epic Citadel test, although the 60 frames per second limitation played a role here. Without this, there might have been a big difference with the HTC One. However, this benchmark uses the Unreal Engine, which is sometimes present in high-end 3D mobile phone games and shows real-world performance.

Finally, JavaScript and HTML 5 performance testing. The smartphone performed well in these benchmarks, but fell behind the Galaxy Note II. We used Android Browser for the test rather than Google Chrome, which also comes pre-installed.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 with the Snapdragon 600 chipset delivered excellent performance even in areas like heavy animated galleries and video players.

There is support for Wi-Fi, GPS/A-GPS/GLONASS, 3G and LTE (optional), Bluetooth 4.0.

Screen

One of the most important updates that the Samsung Galaxy S4 brought was a new 5-inch Super AMOLED screen with a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. The gadget has a PenTile matrix with a pixel density of 441 ppi.

The PenTile design has also been changed so that there are now twice as many green subpixels as blue and red subpixels, and their placement has also changed. However, this is naturally not noticeable without a microscope.

The image quality is excellent. The smartphone has impressive contrast and almost perfect viewing angles. Rich colors transform any image, even the most boring, into a surprisingly vibrant image and are beyond the reach of any LCD display. If you're not a fan of oversaturated AMOLED displays, Samsung gives you the option to change the saturation to a more natural level.

The brightness levels of the Samsung Galaxy S4 are about on par with the company's other AMOLED panels, meaning it's not very high. However, due to low reflectivity, it does not affect the image in sunlight. Keep in mind that turning on the auto settings on-screen option limits the maximum brightness value to 300 nits, so if this matters to you, then it's best to keep it.

Of course, Nokia turned out to be brighter than the AMOLED display in the Galaxy S4, but the difference is not so dramatic. The South Korean smartphone showed good image quality in sunlight, although it is surprising that it did not outperform the Galaxy S3 in this indicator, despite its higher brightness. Perhaps the new Gorilla glass brought additional reflections and thus offset the benefits.

Camera

The Samsung Galaxy S4 has a 13-megapixel camera capable of taking pictures of 4128x3096 pixels. There is also a 2-megapixel front camera that is capable of taking photos and recording video simultaneously with the main one.

It is possible to enable various effects. They can be previewed so you can see how a particular scene will look when the effect is applied.

Let's look at the different modes. There are standard ones such as Rich Tone (), Panorama, Night and Sports. Panoramic shots are quite impressive, they can be 360 ​​degrees or more, and can be larger than 60 MP (note that if you hold the phone vertically, the panoramic image will have almost twice the resolution). Here is an example of a panorama.

The gadget has many shooting modes, which are described in the instructions. All of them are good and useful, but we need to answer the question, does the Galaxy S4 camera take good pictures? The answer is yes, yes, very good. The South Korean company has done a lot of work to maintain good image quality while increasing the resolution.

In the photo you can distinguish many small details, but there is little noise. Colors are accurate, if slightly oversaturated, and the white balance is somewhere between neutral and cool (typical of Samsung phone cameras). The smartphone retains the details of the image in the dark area, although sometimes at the expense of detail in the light. To fix this, you can use HDR mode.

Samsung Galaxy S4 records video in MP4 with bitrate 17 Mbps on average. Stereo sound is saved at 128 bitrate Kbps and sampling rate 48 kHz.

The camcorder does not provide users with so many shooting modes, but there are some effects here too. For example, you can do slow movements, double shooting. Slow motion video can reach up to 8x slow motion, but the resolution drops to 800x450 pixels and the frame rate to 15 per second. The usual parameters for video are a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels and a frame rate of 30 frames per second.

Touch focusing is available before and during video recording, and you can switch back to continuous autofocus if you prefer. You can take 9.6 MP (16:9) photos while recording.

In the video shot with the phone, you can see a lot of small details and little noise. Colors and white balance are similar to those in photographs, generally accurate but slightly oversaturated and with a cool white balance shift. One thing that can be classified as a disadvantage is the narrowed field of view. It is smaller than the Galaxy S III and HTC One. The difference is quite noticeable; the Galaxy S4 captures much less of the frame than its competitors.

The video quality itself isn't much better than the Galaxy S III. You can check this yourself by comparing the records. An example filmed on a Galaxy S4 is shown below.

When we turned on digital video stabilization, it became more detailed and the contrast improved. Below is an example in which stabilization is enabled.

Battery

If you remove the cover that covers the battery compartment, you can see the microSIM slot, an updated removable battery with a capacity of 2600 mAh and a microSD card slot. The memory card slot is hot-swappable.

As it turned out during our battery testing, the additional 500 mAh is easily eaten up by the high screen resolution and more energy-intensive chipsets. As a result, there is no significant superiority over its predecessor. Endurance during video playback and web browsing has been improved only slightly, but standby performance has been a huge step forward. This is, of course, understandable: after all, the chipset does not process any applications, and the screen is turned off.

The gadget can work autonomously for 13 hours 53 minutes when talking using 3G networks, 8 hours 42 minutes when surfing the Internet and 10 hours 16 minutes when playing high-definition video.

Testing has shown that the smartphone can last an average of 63 hours if used for an hour a day for web browsing, video and telephony.

Price

The cost of Samsung Galaxy S4 on the Russian market will depend on the modification:

- 16 GB/3G - 29,990 rubles;

— 64 GB/3G — 36,990 rubles;

- 16 GB/LTE - 29,990 rubles;

- 64 GB/LTE - 36,990 rubles.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 model does not need any special introduction; the smartphone became one of the most popular in 2013 with sales of more than 50 million units. Inspired by this success, Samsung decided to extend the life of the S4 with a small update, and the Black Edition was born. The smartphone is a kind of response to the La Fleur series, which is intended for a female audience. The company thought that men might also like the original smartphone. As a result, the Galaxy S4 received a black body color, a new back cover with a textured “leather” finish, and a slightly updated TouchWiz theme. Let's see if the modified version can replicate the success of the original.

Scope of delivery

In the small box with the Galaxy S4 Black Edition, in addition to the smartphone itself, you can also find a charger with a detachable USB cable and wired headphones.

The headphones themselves are equipped with a microphone and a control panel, and they are made in the tone of the Black Edition, and not in white, as is often the case.

Design

In appearance, the Black Edition is almost identical to the Galaxy S4. The models differ only in color and design of the back cover.

The front panel of the Galaxy S4 Black Edition is covered with protective glass Gorilla Glass 2, the display occupies almost all of its space, and its edge is painted black.

The edges of the smartphone case are gray and varnished.

In general, the main material of the Black Edition case has not changed - it is still the same plastic. However, Samsung has added some practicality to the model. The back cover of the Galaxy S4 was glossy and quickly became covered with scratches; in the Black Edition it was replaced with a matte one with a soft-touch “skin” coating like the Galaxy Note 3.

Such changes benefited the S4; the smartphone not only began to look more solid, but also fit better in the hand. The new coating on the back cover does not slide on the hand as much as the glossy one.

Hardware platform

In terms of technical characteristics, there were also no changes. Galaxy S4 Black Edition is equipped with a 5-inch Super AMOLED touchscreen display with a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels, an Exynos 5 Octa 5410 processor (4 cores Cortex-A15 - 1.6 GHz, 4 cores + Cortex-A7 - 1.2 GHz), 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal memory, which can be expanded with microSD cards. The battery in the smartphone has also not changed; it has a capacity of 2600 mAh and in medium load mode provides a little more than a day of autonomy.

As you can see, the performance and autonomy of the Black Edition have not changed in any way compared to the S4, however, today they are quite sufficient for comfortable work with the device. Even compared to the new flagship S5, the S4 Black Edition doesn't look hopelessly outdated.

	Samsung I9500 Galaxy S4 (Black Edition) 2,820 - 2,821 UAH Compare prices
Type	Smartphone
Standard	GSM 850/900/1800/1900, WCDMA 850/900/2100
SIM card type	Micro-SIM
Number of SIM cards	1
operating system	4.2 (Jelly Bean) + proprietary TouchWiz interface
Housing type	monoblock
Keyboard type	screen input
Dimensions, mm	136.6×69.8×7.9
Weight, g	130
Protection from dust and moisture	—
Battery	Li-Ion, 2600 mAh
Diagonal, inches	5
Permission	1920×1080
Matrix type	Super AMOLED
PPI	441
Dimming sensor	+
Touch screen (type)	touch (capacitive)
Other
CPU
Kernel type	Cortex-A15 + Cortex-A7
Number of cores	8
Frequency, GHz	1,6
RAM, MB	2048
Built-in memory, GB	16/32/64
Expansion slot	microSD (up to 64 GB)
Main camera, MP	13
Autofocus	+
Video shooting
Flash	LED
Front camera, MP	2
Other
WiFi
Bluetooth	4.0 (A2DP)
GPS	+
IrDA	+
NFC	+
Interface connector
Audio jack	3.5 mm
MP3 player	+
FM radio	no data
More	media player, video telephony, Pop up Play (picture-in-picture function), Google services, spatial position sensor (G-sensor), gyroscope, barometer, geomagnetic sensor, temperature and humidity sensors, digital compass, proximity sensor, light sensor, a-GPS/Glonass module, applications for accessing social networks, SIM card type - Micro-SIM

Software

The S4 Black Edition currently runs Android 4.3 with the proprietary TouchWiz interface. Samsung promises to soon release an update to Android 4.4.2, at least for the S4 it has already been released.

How does the Black Edition differ from the S4 in terms of software? By and large, these are just cosmetic changes that are designed to adapt the picture on the screen to the appearance of the smartphone. Thus, the Black Edition received a darker interface theme, a keyboard, as well as new desktop wallpaper and a new set of ringtones.

Otherwise, there are no differences in software between the S4 and Black Edition.

Camera

In 2013, the 13-megapixel Sony Exmor RS camera in the Galaxy S4 was one of the best on the market. Having moved to the S4 Black Edition, it also did not lose its capabilities.

In good lighting, the camera demonstrates excellent image quality, which some flagship smartphones even this year cannot boast of.

Shot in good lighting:

Shot in good lighting in HDR mode:

In low light, as with most smartphone cameras, the S4 Black Edition's photo quality suffers greatly.

Low light shot:

Low-light shot in HDR:

Shot in the dark with flash:

In the end

Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition is a cosmetic update to the Galaxy S4. The smartphone has not become worse in terms of technical characteristics, and even compared to this year’s flagships it looks like a good offer, especially considering their high cost.

Pros: Display, performance, camera, design

Cons: No

Conclusion: Samsung Galaxy S4 Black Edition is a cosmetic update of the Galaxy S4, but in a more practical package