Which smartphone? Samsung Galaxy S5 vs Oppo Find 7

The Samsung Galaxy S5 arrived in Barcelona with a spec sheet busting with sensors and features. But Samsung isn’t the only smartphone manufacturer that’s been busy cramming.

The freshly unveiled Find 7 by the up and coming Chinese smartphone maker Oppo has an impressive spec sheet of its own, with a QHD display taking pride of place among the numbers.

It’s South Korea’s seasoned champion against China’s rising star. Off we go:

Screen wars

Samsung Galaxy S5 vs Oppo Find 7: the weigh in

The Oppos Find 7’s crowning feature is its 5.5in 2560 x 1440 2K QHD screen. That’s a staggeringly sharp 538ppi, and it easily trounces the 5.1in 1080p 432ppi screen of the Galaxy S5. Or any other major smartphone for that matter.

Until the LG G3 drops with its rumoured QHD display, the Find 7’s screen will be undisputed champion. Assuming the G3 rumours are true of course.

The Find 7 uses LCD as apposed to Samsung’s preferred AMOLED screen tech, so you’ll probably prefer the S5’s screen if you rate true blacks above all else. Both screens are slathered in Gorilla Glass 3 for extra scratch protection.

While you’ll also find the Galaxy S5’s screen more comfortable for one-handed use, the Oppo Find 7 simply has to win the screen round sheerly due to the insane nature of its display.

Winner: Oppo Find 7

Beauty contest

The Find 7 and Galaxy S5 have plastic builds for the most part, but they still occupy opposite ends of the design spectrum.

While Samsung has been criticised for not revamping the Galaxy S5’s design, we do like its rubbery, dimpled back. It offers substantially more grip than previous slippery plastic-clad Galaxy devices, and it looks nicer than the faux leather rear of the Galaxy Note 3.

Just ignore the shocking metallic blue colour and you’ll be fine.

It is however still made from polycarbonate, which will disappoint fans looking for some more premium metal and glass materials.

The Oppo Find 7 on the other hand, is more exciting. It’s new, it’s fresh, and, well, it just looks really nice.

We like its subtly rounded curves and its plain black front, and we really, really like its pulsing LED notification strip which is located beneath the display.

It’s also got a steel frame, which should give it a more premium feel than the Galaxy S5.

Both the Galaxy S5 and Find 7 have removable back covers which provide access to handy microSD slots to expand storage. Both batteries can also be replaced, which is another plus.

The Galaxy S5 also features IP67 water and dust protection, and though the Find 7’s screen can be operated with wet hands, it won’t fare as well as the S5 in a downpour.

For feeling fresher with a sleeker, more premium design though, the Find 7 clinches this round.

Winner: Oppo Find 7

READ MORE: Galaxy S5 hands-on review

Snap happy

The Galaxy S5 has a 16MP snapper with an extremely fast 0.3 second autofocus. It also offers the ability to re-focus on different subjects post-shot, and its live HDR mode is very handy for previewing what the final shot will look like.

While we have yet to test the Galaxy S5’s camera out in detail, we expect it to offer impressive pictures, given the high standard set by previous Galaxy devices.

The Oppo Find 7 has 13MP sensor, but it’s capable of taking 10 shots in quick succession before combining the four best images into one massive 50MP photo. It can also shoot shots in RAW format, which will appeal to more serious photographers.

There’s no way we can judge the quality of this megapixel trickery without seeing it in the flesh, but consider our interest piqued.

Both phones also shoot 4K video along with 120fps slow motion footage at 720p.

Until we compare shots taken with both cameras, it’s hard to say which has the better photography skills.

Winner: Draw

Pound for pound power

The Oppo Find 7 and Samsung Galaxy S5 both feature the same powerful quad-core 2.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor. The Oppo Find 7 has 3GB of RAM compared to the Galaxy S5’s 2GB, so you could argue that the Find 7 is a shade more future-proofed.

The Galaxy S5 does however come with Android 4.4 KitKat out of the box, although Oppo has stated that an update for the Find 7 is in the works.

Until we have the Find 7 in our hands, we won’t be able to tell whether or not its insanely high resolution will stress Qualcomm’s silicon, but as this is an on-paper matchup, the Find 7 barely makes it out ahead, thanks to its extra RAM.

Winner: Oppo Find 7

Stamina

While both phones have removable batteries, the Find 7’s is slightly larger with a 3000maAh capacity, compared to the Galaxy S5’s 2800mAh offering.

Not only that, but Oppo claims that the Find 7’s battery can be charged from 0-75% in just 30 minutes, which will come in very handy for quick emergency charges.

It will also be interesting to see just how much of a drain those extra pixels put on the Oppo Find 7’s battery

Samsung has taken a novel approach with battery life in the S5. While it might have a smaller capacity, the S5 has a battery saver mode which freezes all apps, turns the UI black and white, and only runs basic phone and text applications.

Samsung reckons that’s enough to squeeze out an extra 24 hours of runtime with just 10% remaining. Impressive stuff.

Again, we’ll have to wait and see which handset lasts longer in day to day use, so this round is also a draw.

Winner: Draw

Android tweaks

The S5 wins the Android tweaks section, on paper at least. We’ve already mentioned its useful battery saver mode, but it’s got other skills too.

For starters, it’s got a download booster mode which combines both Wi-Fi and 4G data speeds to offer even faster downloads.

The Galaxy S5 is also loaded up with Samsung’s new S Health app, which tracks everything from calories burned to steps taken. Oh, and of course, your heart rate, thanks to the built in heart rate sensor on the S5’s rear.

Speaking of sensors, the Galaxy S5’s Home button doubles up as a fingerprint scanner, letting you unlock the device and restrict access to sensitive files and folders. You can even pay for things online with PayPal with a simple swipe.

Oppo’s Color OS on the other hand offers a few useful tricks of its own, with gesture controls coming in very handy. A two-fingered swipe up or down can, for example, change the volume, and you can create custom gestures too.

Pulling down the notification bar from the top left brings up a gesture panel, which you can then use to draw custom gestures to call contacts or open up apps.

Themes are also supported, allowing you to revamp the look and feel of the device with a few simple taps.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy S5

Initial Verdict

This is a tough one. Our hearts have been won over by Oppo’s audacity to cram a QHD screen into a smartphone. Coupled with its 50MP image capability, fast-charging battery and better design, there’s plenty to love about the Find 7.

The Galaxy S5 on the other hand makes up for its plastic build, smaller battery and 2GB of RAM with plenty of extras.

It’s packed with everything from a heart rate scanner to a genuinely useful fingerprint reader, and we were impressed with its camera during our brief hands-on review.

On paper though, the Oppo wins this initial fight, thanks to its crazy spec list.

Stay tuned for our full reviews of both devices to see which one will come out on top in the real world.

READ MORE: Oppo N1 review

About

Esat has been a gadget fan ever since his tiny four-year-old brain was captivated by a sound-activated dancing sunflower. From there it was a natural progression to a Sega Mega Drive, a brief obsession with hedgehogs, and a love for all things tech. After 7 years as a writer and deputy editor for Stuff, Esat ventured out into the corporate world, spending three years as Editor of Microsoft's European News Centre. Now a freelance writer, his appetite for shiny gadgets has no bounds. Oh, and like all good human beings, he's very fond of cats.