HTC One (M8) vs Sony Xperia Z2: Unsafe mode

Displays

The HTC One (M8) and Sony Xperia Z2 have top of the line displays, not counting those few rocking QHD resolutions out there.

Both smartphones rock 1920 x 1080 resolutions on different diagonals. The HTC One (M8) has a 5" Super LCD3 unit with a pixel density of 441 ppi. The Sony Xperia Z2 has an X-Reality-driven Triluminos LCD of 5.2" diagonal which produces 424 ppi.

Displays

The two LCD panels use the standard RGB pixel arrangement - meaning three subpixels (red, green and blue) per pixel. As you can see the matrices of the two smartphones barely differ.

The actual performance of the displays is also very similar. The black levels of the Sony Xperia Z2 are deeper than those of the HTC One (M8) but only just - you'll not notice a difference even comparing them side by side. The brightness and contrast tests show a lead for the HTC One (M8) but, again, the gap isn't particularly wide.

Display test	50% brightness			100% brightness
	Black, cd/m2	White, cd/m2	Contrast ratio	Black, cd/m2	White, cd/m2	Contrast ratio
HTC One (M8)	0.20	245	1219	0.46	577	1256
Sony Xperia Z2	-	-	-	0.41	488	1195

Looking at the outdoor visibility test reveals how the display maintains its contrast in bright sunlight. Here the HTC One (M8) is again superior, but only just.

Sunlight contrast ratio

• HTC One (M8)
  2.371
• Sony Xperia Z2
  1.944

The colors and viewing angles are a little better on the HTC smartphone as well. But keep in mind that the Sony Xperia Z2 doesn't lag behind too much and has a top quality display by any standard.

Winner: HTC One (M8). The slightly superior contrast and sunlight legibility secure this round for the One (M8). Only just though - the Sony Xperia Z2 display is excellent too, and for purposes practical you won't notice too many differences between these two.

Battery life

The Sony Xperia Z2 has a big lead when it comes to battery capacity - it has a juice pack 600 mAh larger than its competitor. The HTC One (M8) comes with a 2,600 mAh unit whereas the Sony Xperia Z2 dominates with 3,200 mAh on tap.

So let's look at the tests and see what's what. Call times for both are outstanding at above 20 hours each. The Sony Xperia Z2 has two hours more on its charge though at this point the scores are almost as good as equal.

Talk time

• Sony Xperia Z2
  22:13
• HTC One (M8)
  20:01

Web browsing shows two great results. The Sony Xperia Z2 lasted almost 2 and a half hours longer though, taking this round with ease.

Web browsing

• Sony Xperia Z2
  11:32
• HTC One (M8)
  9:06

And finally the video playback test. Another great result for the HTC One (M8) but again not enough to match the Sony Xperia Z2. This time the Sony smartphone bested its competitor by only an hour.

Video playback

• Sony Xperia Z2
  12:16
• HTC One (M8)
  11:14

Adding-in the stand by times of the two smartphones and we the final scores. The Sony Xperia Z2 gets an endurance rating of 89 hours - among the top in our list of tested devices. The HTC One (M8) got 71 hours - an impressive score in its own right.

Winner: Sony Xperia Z2. The HTC One (M8) put up an excellent performance, but it simply couldn't match the Sony Xperia Z2 and its huge 3,200 mAh battery.