Samsung Galaxy S3 vs. Orange San Diego: Can New Intel-Powered Smartphone Stand Up To Samsung’s Best?

Orange UK is set to launch the San Diego (formerly known as Santa Clara) Android smartphone on 6 June. The device is powered by an Intel Atom processor Z2460 that will reportedly offer advanced image processing and optimum power efficiency. The feature-packed smartphone will come with High-Definition (HD) voice and HD video. The device will be available for £199.99 on an Orange Pay As You Go deal, when users top up by £10 in Orange stores. In addition, users will be able to benefit from access to T-Mobile's signal, which will allow them to make calls, text and access high-speed mobile internet.

Samsung's Galaxy S3 comes with some of the finest features around, like Smart Stay, Smart Alert, Direct Call, Social Tag and S Voice. It is powered by an Exynos 4 quad-core processor. The device will be available in 145 countries through 296 carriers by July.

Let's check out how the smartphones stack up:

Dimension

The San Diego has dimensions of 123 x 63 x 10mm and weighs 117g, whereas the Galaxy S3 measures 136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6mm and weighs 133g.

Display

The San Diego comes with a 4.03in TFT LCD capacitive touchscreen with a resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels at 297 pixels per inch (ppi). It is covered with Corning Gorilla Glass, which protects the screen from damage.

The Galaxy S3 features a 4.8in Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels at 306 ppi. The device includes Corning Gorilla Glass 2 - the second generation protective layer that is up to 20 percent thinner enabling better touch responsiveness. It runs the TouchWiz 4.0 User Interface (UI) that provides visual improvements and gesture-based functionality like panning, tilt, double tap and turn-over.

Processor

The San Diego is powered by the Intel Atom Z2460 chipset with a 1.6GHz Intel Atom processor. It utilises hyper-thread technology that offers increased performance and system responsiveness. In comparison, the Galaxy S3 is powered by the quad-core Exynos 4212 processor, which was clocked at 1.4GHz.

Both smartphones ship 1GB of RAM.

Camera

Both the San Diego and the Galaxy S3 pack eight megapixel rear-facing cameras with auto-focus, touch focus and LED flash. Both smartphones allow users to record videos at 1080p. The San Diego comes with a front-facing camera of 1.3 megapixels whereas the Galaxy S3 features a secondary camera of 1.9 megapixels.

Operating System

The San Diego runs on Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) which is upgradable to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS)). The Galaxy S3, on the other hand, comes pre-installed with the latest version of ICS, Android 4.0.4.

Storage

The San Diego has only one model - with 16GB of storage space. Furthermore, it lacks a microSD card slot. The Galaxy S3 has three internal storage variants - 16/32/64GB (the 64GB is expected to be available at a later date) as well as a microSD card slot.

Connectivity

The San Diego features Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot and Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP. In contrast, the Galaxy S3 comes with Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, DLNA, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi hotspot and Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP and EDR. Both smartphones offers support to Near Field Communication (NFC) connectivity.

Battery

The San Diego packs a Li-Ion 1460mAh battery which allows for talk time of up to 14 hours on 2G and eight hours on 3G networks. It offers a total stand by time of up to 14 days. On the other hand, the Galaxy S3 comes with a Li-Ion 2100mAh battery which allows for talk time of up to 21 hours 40 minutes on 2G and 11 hours 40 minutes on 3G networks. It provides for stand by time of up to 590 hours on 2G and 790 hours on 3G networks.