Sony Xperia Z Ultra vs Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 – Phablet Wars
Both handsets, The Sony Xperia Z Ultra vs Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3, are rather different than your regular smartphone. They are what you may call slightly smaller sized tablets or wider, bigger smartphones. But since they are in a different league than smartphones they deserve to be properly differentiated. These devices should not be purchased if your only intention is to use them to make calls and send texts. But if you have other plans in mind, there is a lot of thinking to be done before purchasing one. They vary in many different ways, from the display size to the pricing and you would have to make your choice based on how any of these devices can better satisfy your needs. So let’s begin the comparison by taking into account what these handsets have to offer.
Display and Design
The Xperia Z Ultra is one of the thinnest devices on the market, so if you’re worried about where you will fit your new gadget in your handbag this could be a good choice for you. The thickness of the device is no proof that it is much lighter though. If you don’t have the opportunity to compare these two device first hand, we will let you know that the The Xperia Z Ultra is actually heavier than the Galaxy Mega 6.3. The first one weighs around 212gm while the later is just 199gm. But the Galaxy Mega 6.3 is actually thicker than the Xperia Z Ultra, with one being 6.5 mm thick and the other 8mm thick.
The display of Xperia Z Ultra is a 6.4 inch one with a resolution of 1080p and a pixel density of 344 PPI. The Galaxy Mega 6.3 is really no match in this case as the display has “just” 720 p, a pixel density of 233 PPI and it’s 6.3 inches wide.
But here’s the real reason these two smartphones can’t be compared in the display and design area. The Xperia Z Ultra is waterproof! And it’s got an IP58 certificate for waterproof devices. It can be sunk underwater at just about 1m below. You can easily sink in the other device as well, but you will probably have to return it afterwards as it is not waterproof. We’re serious about this. Don’t even sprinkle water on it. Really.
Processor and Storage
And here is where the real differences start to show. The Galaxy Mega 6.3 has got a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor which is actually pretty good. But when compared to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor of the Xperia Z Ultra, it has much, much less to offer. The Xperia Z Ultra also has a CPU that is a Quad-core 2.2 GHz Krait 400 while the Mega Galaxy 6.3 has got a the Dual-core 1.7 GHz Krait CPU. So no point in arguing who is better here.
The Xperia Z Ultra has an Adreno 330 graphics processing unit (GPU) while the Galaxy Mega 6.3 has the Adreno 305. Also the device from Sony supports multitasking and heavy application usage as it has a RAM of 2 GB. The Galaxy Mega doesn’t need that much and it only has a RAM capacity of 1.5 GB. Internal storage is no longer an issue as you get many choices here. For example, for the Xperia Z Ultra you get 16GB but there is also the option to chose from a 8GB or a 16GB version.
Camera
And now for the real challenge. The camera. The most prizes possession of every smartphone owner out there. It seems that both devices have a 8-megapixel camera with pretty similar features. So not much of a battle here. Expect for the little inconvenient that the Xperia Z Ultra doesn’t have a flash. So if you’re into taking pictures in the dark you may want to go with the Galaxy Mega 6.3 and its LED flash.
To round up the features for you for every device we will say that the Xperia Z Ultra has Geo-tagging, touch focus, face detection, image stabilization, HDR, sweep panorama. The Galaxy Mega 6.3 has exactly the same features only it has face AND smile detection and a panorama feature instead of the sweep panorama.
As for the video recording both seem to be doing pretty well, being able to capture 1080p Full HD videos at 30fps. The Xperia Z Ultra can also capture better quality for the video with the help of the HDR mode it has. And it also has video stabilization which is something to consider.
Xperia’s second camera has 2MP and can capture videos at a resolution of 1080p. The Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 has a 1.9 MP rear camera.
Battery
The Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 seems to be doing better in the battery category as it packs a 3200 mAh battery while the Ultra has a 3050 mAh battery. So while the Mega will hold up longer, it also has the benefit of having a removable battery. So if you are one of those who appreciates the advantages of having backup batteries when you travel or when you know you’ll be away from home for a long time, the Galaxy Mega 6.3 has more to offer from this perspective. But portable charges are also an option if you don’t consider that to be too much trouble.
But the specs the company provides for both devices are something else all together. Sony says that its device can last in standby mode up to 790 hours compared to Samsung’s 490 hours. Also the Xperia Z Ultra can last up to 120 hours in music playing time while the Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 can last 82 hours.
Conclusions
What we haven’t mentioned is the connectivity, as there is not much to be debate here, the two devices being very similar. What sets them apart are the processor for once, and the display and RAM where the Xperia Z Ultra seems to have won the battle against the Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3. The latter can still take praise in the pricing, camera flash and battery section where it seems to be doing better.
Also, let’s not forget the most exciting feature which is the waterproof ability of the Xperia Z Ultra which is useful if you want to show off and throw your phone in a swimming pool or if an unfortunate event occurs that involves water being thrown or spilled over your device. Usually the trouble with water entering a phone is that is causes damage especially in the mic area. But the Sony Xperia Z Ultra has got that all taken care of now.
The regular prices that you can find these devices on Amazon are at around $680 for the Xperia Z Ultra and $450 for the Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3, which is also something we will leave to you to decide if it’s worth the bargain.
