Everyone wants to own a smartphone that is great in terms of performance without being ridiculously overpriced. Sony’s Xperia T2 Ultra and Samsung’s Galaxy Grand 2 are two such second generation phablets which can easily be in neck-to-neck competition with many flagship mid-range phablets. Let’s find out how these great devices fare when pitted against each other.
Appearance & Quality
Sony Xperia T2 Ultra Dual review: The inexpensive Ultra
The Sony Xperia T2 has the same OmniBalance design like that of its premium sibling, albeit the water and dust resistance features. The device is quite attractive and unlike the Xperia Z’s glass back, the Xperia T2 has a plastic non-removable rear which not only keeps its manufacturing cost low but also reduces its weight and thickness. Although, it has a downside to it as well. It gets scratched very easily. But let’s face it – It is a massive phone with 6” screen which might be a bit difficult to operate single-handedly.
While the Galaxy Grand 2 has the same family design which is found in the 2014 Galaxy series of smartphones, Samsung has tried to make some subtle changes in the device. The bezels have slimmed down, the curves on the edges are smooth and most importantly, the glossy plastic back has gone. The back of the device features a faux leather finish which not only gives it a premium look but also makes it easy to grip.
It is very hard to suggest that any one of them is a clear winner. The Sony has an attractive symmetrical design while Samsung focusses on improving the ergonomics and aesthetics by its soft touch back and curved edges.
Winner: Tie
Display & Audio Performance
Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 review
The Xperia T2 comes with a 6 inch IPS LCD screen while the Galaxy Grand 2 has 5.25 inch TFT display. Both the features have 720p HD display but the Galaxy Grand 2 fares better in terms of pixel density with 280 PPI against Xperia T2’s 245 PPI. Also, the display on the Xperia T2 is slightly reflective which mars the experience while using it under direct sunlight. Since the Xperia T2 has a larger display and IPS LCD screen, watching videos on it would prove to be a better experience than the Galaxy Grand 2.
As far as the sound output of the phablets is concerned, the Galaxy Grand 2 loudspeaker earned a great applause. Even in a noisy environment you won’t miss any notification. Both, Samsung and Sony have gone a step ahead to improve the telephony experience by adding an in-call equaliser. The audio quality of the Xperia T2 is not that bad but certainly not better than the Galaxy Grand 2.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
Camera Quality
The Sony Xperia T2 Ultra has a 13MP Exmor R camera sensor with single LED flash and full HD video recording ability. There is also a 1.1MP front-facing camera with HD video recording. The Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 on the other hand, has an 8 MP camera with LED flash, HD video recording and a 1.9MP front-facing camera. But in terms of actual image quality, the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 fares better than the Sony Xperia T2. The images shot with the Xperia T2 Ultra have noise in them and it even suffers with LED flash bleed. The camera sensor used in the Galaxy Grand 2 is essentially the one which was used in the Galaxy S3. Samsung has improved its post-processing a bit which results in impressive image as well as camera quality.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
Hardware Performance
Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 Review
The Xperia T2 runs on 1.4 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400 chipset based on Cortex-A7 CPU while the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 has a 1.2 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400 processor. The Xperia T2 comes with 1 GB RAM and 8 GB ROM which is expended up to 32 GB using a MicroSD card. On the other hand, the Galaxy Grand features 1.5 GB RAM and 8 GB ROM, expendable up to 64 GB. Both the phones feature Adreno 305 GPU, which make them ideal for playing video games. However, the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 beats the Xperia T2 by a slight margin thanks to its larger memory.
|
Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 |
Sony Xperia T2 Ultra Dual SIM |
|
|
GeekBench 3 |
1163 |
1351 |
|
GFXBench |
4 FPS |
4 FPS |
|
SunSpider |
1060 |
1310 |
|
AnTuTu |
17140 |
19851 |
Winner: Tie
Software Quality & Features
Sony Xperia T2 Ultra Review
The Sony Xperia T2 comes preloaded with Android v4.3 Jelly Bean with Xperia UI on top of it. The company has announced a KitKat upgrade. Sony has brought changes in the Xperia UI to some of its apps such as keyboard and dialler to suit one—handed operation for such a large phablet. The Galaxy Grand 2 comes with Android v4.3 Jelly Bean along with Samsung’s TouchWiz UI. The UI seemed to be quite smooth at the start but the device started slowing down after using it for a week.
As for the applications, Sony’s Smart Connect app comes pre-installed in the Xperia T2, which helps you setup automation and do things like launch an app or set an alarm at a particular event. The phone features NFC but lacks any dedicated app for it, but you will get plenty of NFC apps in the Play Store. Apart from all the usual Android apps, Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 has some cool features that makes it stand apart including S Translator and S Planner. S Translator can recognise and typed or spoken foreign speech and translate it in the language of your preference. S Planner automatically syncs with the Google Calendar and ensures that you don’t miss any appointment.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
Connectivity and Battery Endurance
In terms of connectivity, the Galaxy Grand features dual SIM slots, LTE, HSDPA, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0. The Xperia T2 also has similar connectivity features. As far as connectivity is concerned, you can choose any of the devices.
The Xperia T2 houses a 3000mAh battery which promises an impressive talk time of 24 hours of 3G talk-time and 1046 hours of 3G standby, which puts most of the other devices in this range to shame. The Galaxy Grand on the other hand has a 2,600mAh battery, which gives around 370 hours of standby and 17 hours of talk time. In day-to-day usage, the Xperia T2 lasts
Winner: Sony Xperia T2 Ultra
Price & Value
The Sony Xperia T2 Ultra is priced in India around INR 22,599 in India (~$375 USD), while the Samsung Galaxy Grand 2 would cost you around 18,169 in India. Both the devices have some great features which stand out. If you want a smartphone with a large screen, great camera and battery life, you should go with the Xperia T2. And if you are little tight on the budget and yet don’t want to compromise on any of the great features that the high-end smartphones come with, you should choose Samsung Galaxy Grand 2.