Samsung Galaxy S6 VS HTC One M9: Turning The Tables

Do you go Galaxy S6 or One M9? We've lived with both Android phones to help you decide
The race in on. Which is to be this year’s best Android phone? Samsung’s latest entry is the Galaxy S6 while HTC’s top Android is the One M9.

They both have top-end specs, and need to sell in the tens of millions to remotely touch expectations. But which one should you buy?

Well there's a lot of things so consider, but unlike so many of these comparisons, we think there’s actually one clear victory this time. Read on to find out which one we side with, as we compare everything from design and screen to the little connectivity extras they pack in.

Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: Design

Galaxy S6: Aluminium and Gorillas Glass 4, 6.8mm thick

One M9: Aluminium, 9.6mm thick


Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: Colours

Galaxy S6: black, white, gold, blue

One M9: gold/silver, grey


Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: Storage

Galaxy S6: 32/64/128GB, no microSD

One M9: 32GB, microSD

Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: Screen

Galaxy S6: 5.1-inch 2,560 x 1,440 Super AMOLED

One M9: 5-inch 1,920 x 1,080 Super LCD3


Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: Connectivity

Galaxy S6: 4G, Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC, IR, heart rate sensor

One M9: 4G, Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC, IR


Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: CPU and RAM

Galaxy S6: Exynos 7420 2.1GHz with 3GB RAM

One M9: Snapdragon 810 2GHz with 3GB RAM


Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: Software

Galaxy S6: Android 5.0 with TouchWiz

One M9: Android 5.0 with Sense 7.0


Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: Camera

Galaxy S6: 16-megapixel rear, f/1.9, OIS, LED flash, 5-megapixel front

One M9: 20-megapixel rear, f/2.0, dual-LED flash, 4-megapixel front


Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: Battery Life

Galaxy S6: 2550mAh, non-removable battery, Fast Charge technology

One M9: 2840mAh, non-removable battery, Quick Charge 2.0 technology


Samsung Galaxy S6 vs HTC One M9: Speaker

Galaxy S6: Single, on bottom edge

One M9: Stereo BoomSound on front

Verdict

The Galaxy S6 and One M9 both make improvements over last year’s models. However, the Samsung phone’s updates are more important, and generally far more successful.

The fingerprint scanner, the screen, the design and even the camera have all been improved significantly. HTC has not made as many changes to the One M9, and not every change is quite as dramatic or successful as we’d like. It hinges on the camera: it’s still not consistent enough. Battery life is also disappointing.

Supporting HTC has felt a bit like supporting the underdog in the last few years. And we like doing that, but this time Samsung seems to have flat-out beaten HTC.