Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini

Product Information

But there are subtle differences - for starters the size is an obvious one. Secondly, the microUSB port on the bottom of the Samsung Galaxy S5 mini is water resistant and doesn't require a water-repellant flap. The camera lens isn't protruding on the mini as well.

The S5 Mini only has a 4.5in screen and a 1,280×720 resolution, but its Super AMOLED display is just as lovely to look at as the S5’s. Our colour calibrator showed it was displaying an outstanding 100 per cent of the sRGB colour gamut, so you can expect colours to look their very best when watching films and videos. The smaller size will make a difference, especially if you get the mini right after the bigger Galaxy S5. Graphics performance was also much lower than the its big brother, as the S5 Mini struggled to get above 20fps in all three of our 3DMark Ice Storm tests. It scored 3,558 in Ice Storm Unlimited, which translates to 19.5fps, and 2,841 in Ice Storm Extreme, which averaged at 15.2fps. The S5, by comparison, maxed out Ice Storm Extreme and scored a huge 18,451 in Ice Storm Unlimited, which equates to more than 60fps. Comparing the S5 Mini to simiarly priced handsets was equally dissapointing with both the Moto X and Nexus 5 clearly outscoring it in every test. Above the display lies the earpiece, the ambient light sensor, the proximity sensor and the 2.1MP front-facing camera. Also to the left of the earpiece lies the LED notification light, which is normally invisible - it blinks only for notifications. The bottom has an exposed microUSB port and the main microphone. It's nice to have the microUSB exposed instead of under a flap that you'd need to pry open every time you want to charge your phone but you should be wise to wait until the port is dry before plugging in a charger.Otherwise the camera acts and looks the same. There's a column of shortcuts on the left, the middle two of which are customizable. All settings are collected into a grid of shortcuts so you can access everything easier. The retail box of the Samsung Galaxy S5 mini is about the size of the phone it has within. Underneath the Galaxy S5 mini lie headphones, a microUSB cable and an A/C adapter. Several leaflets complete the retail box. It's hard to frown at the images that came out of the Samsung Galaxy S5 mini. We would've liked a slightly higher resolution (say 13MP to match the HTC One mini 2) but otherwise we think the Galaxy S5 mini is a perfectly-acceptable substitute to your point and shoot. The images are detailed and sharp, the camera is fast to focus and save and the photos look great on the phone's HD display or on a PC.

In terms of looks, the S5 Mini shares many of the same design cues as its big brother. Besides the obvious decrease in size, you’d be hard pushed to tell them apart as they both have the same pimpled rear panel to help provide more grip (although the S5 Mini had a decidedly more oily texture than our well-worn S5), and the metallic plastic rim has an identical ribbed design. Even the heart rate sensor is in the same place, sitting just below the rear 8-megapixel camera. The Samsung Galaxy S5 mini comes with an 8MP shooter that can snap at 3265 x 2448 resolution in 4:3 aspect. That's twice as less compared to the Samsung Galaxy S5's mighty 16MP snapper. The photos are in 4:3 ratio as opposed to the 16:9 stills from the big Galaxy S5. You can opt for 16:9 stills on the S5 mini as well, but that would cost you some of the resolution, as the images only come up as 6MP.Versions: G800F (Europe); G800A (AT&T); G800HQ (Turkey); G800H (USA); G800M (LATAM); G800R4 (US Cellular); G800Y (New Zealand) Network

Below you can find our pixel-peeping video quality comparison tool where the Samsung Galaxy S5 mini will face the likes of the HTC One mini 2 and the Apple iPhone 5s. The S5 Mini may only have an 8-megapixel camera, but our photos were very detailed and had very natural colours Macro samples came out nice and sharp as well. The Galaxy S5 mini was able to get really close to the subject and captured detailed images. Here's our photo quality comparison tool. We've enrolled the Samsung Galaxy S5 mini and faced it with the Sony Xperia Z1 Compact (in 8MP Superior Auto mode) and the Apple iPhone 5s. Samsung easily claims it has one of the best HDR modes on the market at the moment and the effect is up to the task on the Galaxy S5 mini. Below you can see the off and on samples to compare. HDR does a good job of exposing the shadows in the images and still take care of blown-out highlights in the images. The effect also offers a balanced look and doesn't appear exaggerated.However, unlike the Alpha, the S5 Mini is IP67 certified, which means it’s protected against dust and can survive being dunked in up to a metre of water for 30 minutes. Best of all, Samsung’s managed to do this without covering the microUSB port with a cheap plastic flap, which is something that made charging the original S5 a bit of a pain. DISPLAY Update: Phones have gotten bigger, it’s fair to say – especially if you’re a fan of Samsung. Handsets start at 5in, and the S6 and S7 didn’t get their own “mini” versions, leaving the Galaxy S5 Mini the last small (sort of) flagship Samsung produced. Assuming you can find one in 2017 (most places have retired it), is it worth owning?