• Windows Phone Area
• On April 28, 2014

Samsung’s flagship for 2014, the Galaxy S5, is already on the shelves offering some improvements in the hardware department, compared with its predecessor. It is definitely one of the best cameraphones available right now, but how does the S5 stand out against the Nokia Lumia 1020, which is the best camera-centric Windows Phone to date. Lumia 1020 has a 41MP PureView camera, a dual-core processor and 2 GB of RAM. The new Samsung has a 16MP 1/2.6’ sensor and much faster quad-core processor.

All About Windows Phone has conducted a comprehensive test comparing the imaging capabilities of both smartphones. For each scene, we are looking at 1:1 crops from the original JPG output – Lumia 1020 is on top and the S5 is below.

Afternoon sunlight

Both models have done a great job with image processing, though the results are completely different. The Lumia 1020 produces more natural colors, but the output is not as sharp as from the Galaxy S5.

Click here for original files – Nokia 1020 & Samsung Galaxy S5

Hazy sunlight,

Lumia 1020 (on top) delivers more natural colors, while the S5’s crop has less details.

Poor light (heavy rain) medium distance subject

In this scene Galaxy S5 shows better colors, contrast and less noise. Lumia 1020 has better details, but the picture has a lot of noise. Samsung wins here.

Macro

Lumia 1020 (on top) produces more vivid colors with a great bokeh effect, but overall Samsung Galaxy S5 just edges a win with this perfectly exposed scene.

Low Light

Galaxy S5 looks very competitive in low light – you can see less noise, but also lack of details, compared with the Lumia 1020, so Nokia wins.

Original files: Lumia 1020, Galaxy S5

Conclusion

AAWP gives 71 pts to the Lumia and 60 pts to the Samsung. Both models shows similar performance in outdoor scenes, but Nokia is a clear winner when the sun goes down.

Image credits: All about Windows Phone (AAWP)