[Galaxy S 4 General] puremind:
Photography is about art, it cannot be put into numbers or rational explanations. Reducing the aesthetic pleasure that the use of a camera gives to one characteristic alone is extremely reductive...I don't think it's why people are loving the camera on the HTC One.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.155832331250039.1073741831.149784961854776&type=3

Adding megapixels in my opinion is not how you inject emotions into a phone and it's not how you make people care about a camera.

I think those that care about photogrpahy will find a way to work within the limiations of their device to still produce pictures that provoke deep emotions. HTC built their software around that, proving that when it comes to art, it is futile to try and rationalize or explain why the One's camera is provoking that moment. Color accuracy? Stabilized videos? The promptness of the picture once your finger has pressed that button? The accurate display of the One that make the pictures look so life like? The booming sound coming out of your Zoes?

I don't think it matters. I can see more details in the S4's pictures but I still much prefer the overall camera experience of the HTC One and how it is enbedded into the overall mutlimedia experience.

I think HTC have developed a device for videophiles, audiophiles and photographers, carefully controlling each step of the overall experience. Samsung have put specs together but not given enough thought to the total user-centric experience. It doesn't seem to exude the same kind of user-centric harmony.

It is not only with the camera, though that the S4 lacks personality. The whole phone feels like a catalogue of specs that the device had to fulfil, the apps feel like a random arrangement of Google Play apps, there is no personality or integration into the fabric of the phone. If they weren't called "S something" you wouldn't knowSamsung has developed them (S Planner, S Voice, S Translator, S Health, Samsung Link, etc...it's probably why they felt the need to add an "S" in the first place).

Last year, I thought Samsung's marketing and product development did a great job with the S3 because they injected personality into their phone. This year I feel they have failed to capture the hearts of the consumers. "Life Companion" doesn't resonate as much as "Made for Humans". The concept is fine, I just think it hasn't been woven into the fabric of the phone well enough.

This year their phone feels empty even though it is full. The ads are great! It is just a shame the user interface doesn't feel like an extension of those ads. With all of the futuristic features, there were so many interesting options to make the device feel more like an intelligent, fuuristic Android device.

For example

Why not reskin all apps to give them a more futuristic, Android-like look instead of the visual identity of a web page for herbal medicines?.

Why not build a personality around that life companion?, .e.g by merging the interactive apps like S Voice, S Translator, S Health together? S Voice is fun because it responds to questions you ask in funny or unexpected ways similar to the "Portals" game. Likewise the health app could be interactive and talk to you when your environment becomes hostile, or your health is deteriorating and could use some funny / bold phrasing. And the translator could just be the same life companion giving you translations, similar to the AI on a spaceship straight from a science fiction film...

When Apple put a sharper display into their iPhones they called it retina display. HTC came up with Boomsoun and Blinkfeed ("in the blink of an eye") and ultrapixels. When Samsung add megapixels, they call it a 13MP camera...Not Iris or SharpLid Camera, just 13MP camera. They tried with "Airview", "SmartPause" and "SmartGestures", but those weren't sigificant enough features to have their own name and you end up being more confused because of all those names.

This is why people say the S4 feels a bit rushed and unfinished. The user experience is not as polished as on the HTC One, and this is why the HTC One has received near universal press acclaim.