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Ascend D2 vs. Galaxy S3 vs. Droid DNA: Spec showdown

AJ Dellinger
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Huawei isn’t exactly the biggest name in mobile at the moment. Despite some great handsets available already, the company hasn’t managed to get a foothold quite as big as the leaders in the industry. If one wants to be a leader, though, one has to make a strong case for oneself. The Ascend D2, Huawei’s latest flagship phone offering, looks like it’ll do a good job of making that case. A sizable screen, impressive in-house built processor, and a 13 megapixel camera make it look like a sure-fire contender with the other top dogs. We wanted to see how exactly it would stack up in a tale of the tape with others in its weight class, so we lined it up against the Samsung Galaxy S3 and HTC’s Droid DNA to see who would come out on top.

For more information on all these phones, check out the Ascend D2 announcement and our review of the Galaxy S3 and Droid DNA.

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Ascend D2

 

Galaxy S3

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Droid DNA

Droid DNA htc
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Size 140 x 71 x 9.4 (mm) 136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6 (mm) 140.9 x 70.6 x 9.7 (mm)
Weight 170g  133g 140g
Screen 5.0-inch LCD 4.8-inch Super AMOLED 5-inch Super LCD 3
Resolution 1920 x 1080 pixels 1280×720 pixels 1920×1080 pixels
OS Android 4.1 Android 4.0 with TouchWiz UI Android 4.1 with HTC Sense 4+
Storage 32GB 16/32GB 16GB
SD Card Slot Yes Yes No
Processor 1.5GHz quad-core K3V2 Dual-core Snapdragon S4 (US) 1.5GHz, quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro
RAM 2GB 2GB 2GB
Connectivity Wi-Fi, 4G LTE, HSPA+ Wi-Fi, 4G LTE, HSPA+ Wi-Fi, 4G LTE, EV-DO Rev.A
Camera Front 1.3MP, Rear 13MP Front 1.9MP, Rear 8MP Front 2.1MP, Rear 8MP
Bluetooth Yes, version 4.0 Yes, version 4.0 Yes, version 4.0
Battery 3000mAh 2100mAh 2020mAh
Charger Micro USB Micro USB Micro USB
Marketplace Google Play Store Google Play Store Google Play Store
Price Unknown $200 $200
Availability China: 1/13 North America: Unknown  AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon Verizon

When it comes to screens, it’s the Ascend D2 and Droid DNA that pull ahead. Both with a 5-inch display and pixel-per-inch ratio cracking the 440 mark, these phones come with quite possibly the best looking displays we’ve seen. The in-house made, quad-core processor that powers the Ascend D2 is probably the most intriguing thing in this entire match up. During its CES 2013 unveiling, Huawei made sure to show just what the processor was capable of, and it didn’t disappoint. We’d still like to get our hands on it to experience it in person. Samsung obviously has the advantage of market share which plays to its advantage with features like S Beam, the NFC sharing system that works between other Samsung devices. While much of the contest is pretty neck-and-neck, the Ascend D2 soars when it comes to the camera. The 13 megapixel rear-facing camera might be a big enough improvement over the 8 megapixel offerings on both the Galaxy S3 and the Droid DNA to win over photography buffs. While the Ascend D2 probably won’t be in stores in North America for awhile, we’ll be looking forward to getting our hands on it and seeing what it can do.

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AJ Dellinger
AJ Dellinger
Contributor
AJ Dellinger is a freelance reporter from Madison, Wisconsin with an affinity for all things tech. He has been published by…
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