iPhone 6 vs. Galaxy Alpha vs. Xperia Z3 Compact: Three kings

Display

It's two LCDs versus an AMOLED, all three around the same size. Samsung the only company that consistently uses AMOLED displays on its flagships - no wonder since it's making them in-house.

The Galaxy Alpha packs a 4.7" Super AMOLED with 720p resolution and 312ppi pixel density. It's a diamond-pattern PenTile matrix so the actual sharpness isn't quite as high as it sounds on paper. If you know what to look for you can notice some fuzziness in high-contrast areas but it's nothing major and it's more of a nitpicking.

A comparison of displays

Both Apple and Sony stick to LCD, specifically IPS LCD for some great side viewing angles. Compared to SuperAMOLEDs, LCDs tend to be brighter but have lower contrast, and then there's the whole color accuracy debate.

The Apple iPhone 6 has a 4.7" display with the unusual resolution of 750 x 1,334px or just over 720p, giving it the 326ppi pixel density. Note that apps that don't support the new resolution will be upscaled from 640 x 1,136px, which would actually reduce the subjective image sharpness significantly.

The Sony Xperia Z3 Compact has the smallest display of the bunch, 4.6", with 720p resolution. The difference in surface area is pretty small, less than 5%, but the Sony is the only one with on-screen buttons, which makes more of a difference. They take up an extra 8% of the screen surface area.

Before we jump on to image quality, let's cover the available screen protection first. All three phones use various brands of shatterproof glass. The one on the iPhone 6 has a smoothly chamfered edge, which very pleasantly curves into the sides of the curved metal body of the phone.

The two LCDs in this fight are some of the brightest we've tested, hitting 720-740 nits. That gives them a very clear lead on the Super AMOLED, which tops out at 450 nits. The black levels on the LCDs stay acceptable even at full blast, the iPhone 6 manages a respectable 1,200:1 contrast ratio while the Xperia slips under 1,000:1. As usual the AMOLED screen offers the best contrast, which makes images really pop.

Display test	50% brightness			100% brightness
	Black, cd/m2	White, cd/m2	Contrast ratio	Black, cd/m2	White, cd/m2	Contrast ratio
Samsung Galaxy Alpha	0	228	∞	0	456	∞
Sony Xperia Z3 Compact	-	-	-	0.77	725	942
Apple iPhone 6	0.17	207	1230	0.61	740	1213

Sunlight legibility is a function of the screen's brightness and reflectivity. The very bright iPhone 6 screen does very well here, coming in behind only a few phones, notably the iPhone 5 and Galaxy Note 3. Samsung's Super AMOLED assembly keeps reflectivity low so it achieves a very good result too, despite the deficit in brightness.

The Xperia Z3 Compact disappoints here, despite being one of the brightest screens it's very reflective too, earning it only an average mark.

Sunlight contrast ratio

• Nokia 808 PureView
  4.698
• Apple iPhone 5
  3.997
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  3.997
• Apple iPhone 6
  3.838
• Samsung Galaxy K zoom
  3.675
• Nokia Lumia 930
  3.567
• Apple iPhone 5s
  3.565
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  3.549
• Alcatel Idol X+
  3.527
• Apple iPhone 5c
  3.512
• Samsung Galaxy Alpha
  3.509
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
  3.487
• Motorola RAZR MAXX
  3.42
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  3.419
• Nokia Lumia 925
  3.402
• Gionee Elife S5.5
  3.386
• Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
  3.352
• Samsung Omnia W
  3.301
• Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
  3.174
• Samsung I9000 Galaxy S
  3.155
• Samsung Ativ S
  3.129
• Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini
  3.127
• Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom
  3.118
• Nokia N9
  3.069
• Apple iPhone 6 Plus
  3.023
• Samsung Galaxy Note
  2.97
• Samsung Galaxy Premier
  2.958
• Sony Xperia Z1
  2.95
• HTC One S
  2.901
• Samsung I8730 Galaxy Express
  2.861
• BlackBerry Q10
  2.856
• Samsung I9100 Galaxy S II
  2.832
• Samsung Galaxy S II Plus
  2.801
• BlackBerry Z30
  2.79
• Sony Xperia ZR
  2.672
• Huawei Ascend P1
  2.655
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  2.616
• Sony Xperia T3
  2.609
• Nokia Lumia 900
  2.562
• Motorola Moto G 4G
  2.546
• HTC One Max
  2.537
• Nokia Lumia 720
  2.512
• HTC One
  2.504
• Motorola Moto G
  2.477
• Sony Xperia Z
  2.462
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  2.424
• Samsung Galaxy S III mini
  2.422
• LG G Flex
  2.407
• HTC One (M8)
  2.371
• Motorola RAZR i
  2.366
• Sony Xperia ZL
  2.352
• Samsung Galaxy Note II
  2.307
• Oppo Find 7a
  2.279
• Alcatel One Touch Hero
  2.272
• Apple iPhone 4S
  2.269
• HTC Desire 600 dual sim
  2.262
• Nokia Asha 311
  2.25
• LG Nexus 5
  2.228
• Nokia Lumia 820
  2.193
• HTC One (E8)
  2.185
• Nokia Lumia 920
  2.17
• HTC One X
  2.158
• Nokia N8
  2.144
• Nokia Lumia 620
  2.142
• Nokia 515
  2.134
• HTC Desire 500
  2.129
• Sony Xperia acro S
  2.119
• Xiaomi Redmi Note
  2.119
• Nokia Lumia 1020
  2.103
• Oppo Find 5
  2.088
• Sony Xperia SL
  2.078
• Nokia Lumia 630
  2.056
• BlackBerry Z10
  2.051
• Samsung I9295 Galaxy S4 Active
  2.022
• Apple iPhone 4
  2.016
• HTC One mini
  2.003
• Xiaomi Mi 3
  2.001
• Huawei Ascend P7
  1.992
• LG G2
  1.976
• OnePlus One
  1.961
• Oppo R819
  1.957
• Sony Ericsson Xperia ray
  1.955
• Sony Xperia Z2
  1.944
• Nokia Lumia 1320
  1.941
• HTC One mini 2
  1.94
• Samsung Galaxy Camera
  1.938
• Sony Xperia J
  1.932
• Acer CloudMobile S500
  1.931
• LG Nexus 4
  1.926
• LG G Pro 2
  1.922
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3
  1.913
• Nokia Asha 308
  1.911
• HTC Butterfly 2
  1.905
• Sony Xperia T
  1.894
• HTC Desire X
  1.878
• HTC Windows Phone 8X
  1.873
• HTC Butterfly
  1.873
• HTC Butterfly S
  1.867
• Huawei Ascend P6
  1.865
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  1.845
• LG G2 mini
  1.838
• LG G3
  1.82
• Nokia Lumia 1520
  1.813
• HTC Desire 616 dual sim
  1.797
• Sony Xperia V
  1.792
• HTC Desire 816
  1.783
• Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
  1.772

We mentioned colors before, mainly because AMOLEDs have a reputation for oversaturating. That's true but Samsung has added several modes to let you manage the exact level of saturation, you can pick between several settings until you find the one that suites you best.

Sony also have display tuning options, but those give you sliders so you can control the white balance. There's also a choice of X-Reality and Super-vivid image enhancing modes. Apple offers no screen calibration options.

Putting the phones side by side, the iPhone 6 screen is closest to the mark in terms of white balance (it's slightly warm). The Xperia Z3 Compact is close behind (a bit too cool), while the Galaxy Alpha has a noticeable yellow tint. We tried switching the color modes but those mainly affected color saturation and not the white balance.

For viewing angles, the iPhone 6 and Galaxy Alpha perform beautifully with no noticeable changes in color and contrast. The Xperia Z3 Compact screen did exhibit some shift but that's only under the widest of angles.

Before the conclusion of this chapter, there are just a couple of features left to cover. Both the Samsung and Sony phones have dedicated high-sensitivity touch modes so they can be operated with gloves. The Xperia Z3 Compact also has a double tap to wake feature, which is a personal favorite in our team.

Winner: Apple iPhone 6. It's the brightest, with the best legibility and with great colors and viewing angles. The chamfered glass is pleasant and the overall image quality is wonderful.

Runner up: Samsung Galaxy Alpha. The white balance is off, but you only notice when you have something to compare it to. The Super AMOLED does very well in direct sunlight and has stunning contrast, but it's not as bright as the LCDs.

Third place: Sony Xperia Z3 Compact. It's smaller both due to its diagonal and due to the omnipresent on-screen buttons, though the bigger issue is that it's just too reflective. It also has the biggest contrast shift when looked at a really wide side angle.

Connectivity

Connectivity - both wide area and local - has mostly evened out. There are still some differences between the three devices that might prove crucial for some. Note that the specs might differ by region, you should consult the specifications and your carrier for exact details.

The main market of the Apple iPhone is the US so it comes with both GSM and CDMA connectivity (plus TD-SCDMA for the Chinese version). The fastest connection is on LTE (again with TD-LTE for China), reaching theoretical speeds of up to 150Mbps downlink.

Apple has upgraded the call functionality so the iPhone 6 can use Voice over LTE (VoLTE), which offers high-quality audio with HD Voice, as well as Wi-Fi calling (also known as UMA this solves some reception issues). Of course, both need to be supported by your carrier.

The Samsung Galaxy Alpha and the Sony Xperia Z3 Compact are pure GSM devices. They have 150Mbps LTE as well though the Snapdragon 801 version of the Galaxy is rated at 300Mbps (not that you'd find such a carrier). The Xperia Z3 also supports VoLTE.

In terms of local connectivity, all three phones have dual-band Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac with hotspot support. Both iOS and Android have separate ways to send files over Wi-Fi, but iOS lacks native DLNA functionality. Bluetooth v4.0 with Low Energy mode is supported on all three devices, the Androids also have ANT+ for sports accessories.

NFC is available on all three phones though Apple has limited it to Apple Pay only. On the other two you can use it to pair devices, transfer files and read/write NFC tags.

GPS and GLONASS are available for positioning, the iPhone 6 and Xperia Z3 Compact have barometers to speed up the initial lock.

Finally, we come down to wired connectivity. Apple is sticking to its own standard, the Lightning port, which can be plugged-in two ways for added convenience. It serves the purposes of charging and transferring data and audio/video but you'll need Lightning cables and adapters and they usually cost more than their USB equivalents.

Sony and Samsung use the industry standard microUSB 2.0 port (Samsung is stepping back from microUSB 3.0). The main duties of the port are charging and data, but Sony has also added included MHL (for HDMI out) and USB On-the-go functionality to their port. Samsung has not, leaving the Galaxy Alpha with no wired TV Out option.

None of the three phones have IR blasters for what that's worth.

Winner: Sony Xperia Z3 Compact. It offers VoLTE and its microUSB port is equipped with MHL and USB OTG functionality. ANT+ and NFC are nice to have and the barometer is also a nice perk, which can speed location services in densely built areas.

Runner up: Apple iPhone 6. Having VoLTE, Wi-Fi calling and CDMA is valuable for US users, but Apple's reluctance to add proper NFC support, plus the proprietary port and the more expensive connectivity accessories keep the iPhone 6 from grabbing the victory. The addition of Wi-Fi 802.11ac and a barometer are welcome improvements though.

Third place: Samsung Galaxy Alpha. The 300Mbps LTE options will leave you looking for a carrier to use it on and no wired TV out is less than perfect.

Battery life

The current trend in smartphones is for razor-thin devices with enormous displays. This article rails against the massive screens but there's a case to be made against thin phones too - many people consider battery life more important than a slim profile (as long as it's kept under 9-10mm, of course).

The Sony Xperia Z3 Compact is the poster boy, being the thickest of the three but also enjoying a significant advantage in battery capacity. At 2,600mAh it has a good 40% more juice than the 1,810mAh and 1,860mAh batteries of the Galaxy Alpha and iPhone 6 respectively.

We should note that we're using the Exynos 5430 version of the Galaxy Alpha for these tests.

If you read our review of the Z3 Compact you'll know it's an absolute battery champ, falling behind only much larger devices. The iPhone 6 is not bad either, it helps that Apple gets to optimize both software and hardware (including a custom chipset). The Galaxy Alpha did surprisingly well for its battery capacity - Android is more resource hungry than iOS.

The Sony managed an impressive 16 hours 40 minutes of talk time on a single charge. That's 3-4 hours ahead of the other two and essentially means that talk time won't have much of an impact on your total battery life. The Galaxy Alpha beats the iPhone 6 by an hour here.

Talk time

• Huawei Ascend Mate2 4G
  33:19h
• Nokia Lumia 1520
  28:34h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 4
  28:34h
• Sony Xperia Z1
  26:53h
• LG G3
  25:54h
• Samsung P6800 Galaxy Tab 7.7
  25:45h
• LG G Pro 2
  25:37h
• LG G Flex
  25:19h
• Sony Xperia T2 Ultra
  25:16h
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  25:12h
• Alcatel Hero
  25:02h
• LG G2
  25:01h
• Oppo N1
  25:01h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
  24:52h
• Sony Xperia Z Ultra
  24:23h
• Apple iPhone 6 Plus
  23:49h
• Sony Xperia Z3
  23:13h
• Samsung P6200 Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus
  22:42h
• Huawei MediaPad 7 Vogue
  22:16h
• Sony Xperia Z2
  22:13h
• Nokia Lumia 1020
  22:13h
• Samsung Galaxy Core LTE
  22:13h
• HTC One Max
  22:13h
• Nokia Lumia 1320
  22:13h
• Samsung ATIV SE
  22:05h
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  21:20h
• Motorola RAZR MAXX
  21:18h
• LG Optimus G Pro E985
  20:45h
• Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
  20:42h
• Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
  20:24h
• Motorola RAZR i XT890
  20:07h
• Oppo Find 7
  20:03h
• HTC One (M8)
  20:01h
• BlackBerry Q10
  20:00h
• OnePlus One
  19:56h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
  19:55h
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 I9200
  19:54h
• Sony Xperia SP
  19:49h
• Sony Xperia T3
  19:48h
• HTC Butterfly S
  19:14h
• Oppo R819
  19:03h
• Asus PadFone X
  18:45h
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  18:15h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  18:12h
• LG G2 mini
  18:11h
• Oppo Find 7a
  18:11h
• Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
  18:03h
• Sony Xperia ZR
  17:48h
• HTC One (E8)
  17:47h
• Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
  16:57h
• HTC Desire 700 dual sim
  16:56h
• Samsung Ativ Odyssey I930
  16:41h
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  16:40h
• LG Nexus 5
  16:40h
• Nokia Lumia 930
  16:40h
• Samsung I9295 Galaxy S4 Active
  16:40h
• Sony Xperia M2
  16:40h
• Sony Xperia M2 Aqua
  16:39h
• Motorola Moto E Dual SIM
  16:38h
• Motorola Moto E
  16:38h
• Sony Xperia Z
  16:03h
• Samsung Galaxy K zoom
  16:01h
• Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom
  15:32h
• LG Optimus G E975
  15:30h
• Sony Xperia ZL
  15:22h
• Nokia Lumia 720
  15:17h
• Xiaomi Hongmi 1S
  14:51h
• HTC Desire 816
  14:46h
• Alcatel Idol X+
  14:41h
• BlackBerry Q5
  14:31h
• Motorola Moto G 4G
  14:17h
• Huawei Ascend P6
  14:17h
• Nokia Lumia 635
  14:17h
• Oppo Find 5
  14:17h
• Nokia Lumia 620
  14:17h
• Pantech Discover
  14:17h
• LG Nexus 4 E960
  14:17h
• Nokia Lumia Icon
  14:15h
• Motorola Moto X
  14:06h
• Motorola Moto G
  13:41h
• HTC One
  13:38h
• Huawei Ascend P7
  13:36h
• Nokia Lumia 520
  13:33h
• HTC One X+
  13:31h
• Sony Xperia C
  13:29h
• Xiaomi Mi 3
  13:28h
• Samsung Galaxy Alpha
  13:20h
• Apple iPhone 6
  12:26h

The Xperia Z3 Compact stunned us with its stamina while browsing the web - it went on for nearly 15 hours before it finally ran out of charge. Speaking of, the phone has a power-saving feature called Stamina mode if you really need to stretch the remaining milliamps in the battery. The Galaxy Alpha has a similar feature, while the iPhone does not have anything of the sort.

Anyway, the iPhone 6 did a respectable 10 and a half hours - surprisingly, not much different time than it achieved in the call test. The Galaxy Alpha loses the fight with a 2-hour deficit to the iPhone. Keep in mind that for most phones lasting 8 and half hours is an amazing result - the 5.5" LG G3 only manages 6:40, for example.

Web browsing

• Huawei Ascend Mate2 4G
  16:41h
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  14:52h
• Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
  13:14h
• Sony Xperia C
  12:45h
• Nokia Lumia 1520
  12:40h
• Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
  12:37h
• HTC Desire 700 dual sim
  12:30h
• Sony Xperia T2 Ultra
  12:17h
• Sony Xperia Z3
  12:03h
• Nokia XL
  11:54h
• HTC Desire 816
  11:48h
• Sony Xperia Z2
  11:32h
• LG G2
  11:22h
• Sony Xperia ZR
  11:20h
• HTC One Max
  11:20h
• HTC Butterfly S
  11:07h
• Asus PadFone X
  11:07h
• LG G2 mini
  11:02h
• Nokia Lumia 1320
  10:58h
• Motorola Moto G 4G
  10:52h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 4
  10:44h
• Apple iPhone 6
  10:29h
• Nokia Lumia 630
  10:18h
• BlackBerry Q5
  10:04h
• HTC One (E8)
  10:02h
• Nokia Lumia 635
  10:00h
• Apple iPhone 5s
  9:58h
• HTC One
  9:58h
• Apple iPhone 5
  9:56h
• Samsung Ativ Odyssey I930
  9:54h
• Sony Xperia M2
  9:48h
• Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini
  9:47h
• OnePlus One
  9:46h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
  9:43h
• Alcatel Hero
  9:40h
• Samsung Galaxy Core LTE
  9:37h
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  9:36h
• Xiaomi Mi 4
  9:31h
• LG G Flex
  9:31h
• LG G Pro 2
  9:31h
• Sony Xperia T3
  9:23h
• Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 LTE
  9:16h
• Motorola RAZR MAXX
  9:12h
• Samsung Galaxy K zoom
  9:10h
• HTC One (M8)
  9:06h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
  9:05h
• Apple iPhone 5c
  9:05h
• Apple iPhone 6 Plus
  9:05h
• Oppo N1
  9:05h
• Motorola Moto G
  9:04h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  9:04h
• Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom
  8:51h
• Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
  8:48h
• BlackBerry Q10
  8:42h
• Motorola Moto E Dual SIM
  8:42h
• Motorola Moto E
  8:42h
• Sony Xperia M2 Aqua
  8:38h
• Samsung Galaxy Alpha
  8:25h
• Nokia Lumia 810
  8:20h
• Asus PadFone 2
  8:20h
• Motorola Moto X
  8:17h
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 I9200
  8:17h
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  8:17h
• HTC One mini
  8:12h
• Xiaomi Mi 3
  8:04h
• Nokia Lumia 610
  8:01h
• HTC One X+
  7:56h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo
  7:43h
• Motorola DROID RAZR M
  7:42h
• Sony Xperia E dual
  7:42h
• Samsung I8190 Galaxy S III mini
  7:38h
• Nokia Lumia 720
  7:37h
• Samsung I9295 Galaxy S4 Active
  7:35h
• Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
  7:24h
• Huawei MediaPad 7 Vogue
  7:23h
• Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
  7:23h
• HTC Radar
  7:17h
• Nokia Lumia 520
  7:15h
• Huawei Ascend P7
  7:13h
• Samsung ATIV SE
  7:12h
• LG Optimus GJ E975W
  7:11h
• Meizu MX3
  7:09h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand I9082
  7:09h
• Samsung Galaxy Express I8730
  7:09h
• Oppo Find 7a
  7:09h
• Sony Xperia M
  7:09h
• Motorola RAZR i XT890
  7:06h
• Sony Xperia J
  7:06h
• Samsung I9500 Galaxy S4
  6:58h
• Apple iPhone 4s
  6:56h
• Samsung P6800 Galaxy Tab 7.7
  6:54h
• Xiaomi Hongmi 1S
  6:54h
• Samsung Galaxy Core I8260
  6:54h
• HTC One V
  6:49h
• HTC DROID DNA
  6:40h
• Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus
  6:40h
• Sony Xperia E
  6:40h
• Sony Xperia L
  6:40h

For video playback the Xperia Z3 Compact pulls another 15-hour shift, beating the other two by a huge margin. It lasts nearly twice as long as the Galaxy Alpha and its 8 hour time. The Apple iPhone 6 does slightly better - 9 and a half hours - but it doesn't close the margin.

Video playback

• LG G Flex
  19:57h
• Huawei Ascend Mate2 4G
  18:01h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 4
  17:25h
• Motorola RAZR MAXX
  16:35h
• Sony Xperia Z3 Compact
  15:03h
• Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
  14:17h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3
  13:32h
• Sony Xperia T2 Ultra
  13:12h
• Samsung I9190 Galaxy S4 mini
  13:12h
• Nokia Lumia 1020
  13:12h
• HTC One Max
  13:11h
• Sony Xperia C
  12:53h
• Samsung Galaxy Premier I9260
  12:51h
• Nokia Lumia 1520
  12:31h
• Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4
  12:30h
• BlackBerry Q5
  12:28h
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  12:18h
• Sony Xperia Z2
  12:16h
• Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 LTE
  12:10h
• LG G2
  11:51h
• Sony Xperia Z3
  11:47h
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Neo
  11:38h
• Samsung P6800 Galaxy Tab 7.7
  11:37h
• Samsung I9500 Galaxy S4
  11:29h
• Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
  11:27h
• OnePlus One
  11:23h
• HTC One (E8)
  11:16h
• Oppo N1
  11:15h
• BlackBerry Q10
  11:15h
• Apple iPhone 6 Plus
  11:15h
• HTC One (M8)
  11:14h
• Samsung Galaxy S5
  11:05h
• Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
  11:02h
• Asus PadFone X
  11:01h
• HTC Desire 816
  10:34h
• Apple iPhone 5s
  10:31h
• LG G2 mini
  10:23h
• Apple iPhone 5
  10:12h
• Samsung Galaxy K zoom
  10:08h
• Samsung ATIV SE
  10:07h
• Sony Xperia M2
  10:04h
• HTC First
  10:03h
• HTC One
  10:02h
• Motorola Moto X
  10:01h
• Sony Xperia Z1 Compact
  10:01h
• Nokia Lumia 635
  10:00h
• Nokia Lumia 630
  10:00h
• Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus
  10:00h
• Samsung Galaxy Express I8730
  10:00h
• LG G3
  9:57h
• Sony Xperia T3
  9:56h
• Nokia 808 PureView
  9:53h
• Sony Xperia M
  9:49h
• Alcatel Hero
  9:49h
• Samsung I8530 Galaxy Beam
  9:42h
• Samsung Rugby Smart I847
  9:34h
• Samsung Galaxy S4 zoom
  9:30h
• HTC One S
  9:28h
• Xiaomi Mi 3
  9:28h
• HTC One S C2
  9:28h
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  9:27h
• Apple iPhone 4s
  9:24h
• Apple iPhone 6
  9:24h
• Samsung Galaxy mini 2 S6500
  9:22h
• Sony Xperia M2 Aqua
  9:21h
• Oppo Find 7a
  9:19h
• Nokia Lumia 1320
  9:17h
• HTC Butterfly S
  9:03h
• Motorola DROID RAZR M
  9:00h
• Sony Xperia E
  9:00h
• Samsung Ativ Odyssey I930
  8:59h
• Sony Xperia Z Ultra
  8:45h
• BlackBerry Z10
  8:44h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand 2
  8:41h
• LG Optimus G Pro E985
  8:40h
• Nokia N9
  8:40h
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 I9200
  8:34h
• HTC Butterfly
  8:28h
• Samsung Galaxy Note N7000
  8:25h
• LG Optimus GJ E975W
  8:15h
• Samsung Galaxy S III I747
  8:14h
• Motorola RAZR i XT890
  8:11h
• Sony Xperia J
  8:11h
• HTC One X+
  8:11h
• Samsung Galaxy Grand I9082
  8:11h
• Huawei Ascend P7
  8:10h
• Samsung Galaxy Alpha
  8:05h
• Samsung I9100 Galaxy S II
  8:00h
• Samsung Focus S I937
  7:55h
• Samsung S8600 Wave 3
  7:52h
• HTC Desire 500
  7:50h
• Samsung I8190 Galaxy S III mini
  7:46h
• Sony Ericsson Xperia neo V
  7:45h
• Apple iPhone 5c
  7:41h
• Huawei Ascend P1
  7:38h
• Asus PadFone 2
  7:38h
• Nokia Lumia Icon
  7:34h
• Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G T769
  7:33h
• HTC DROID DNA
  7:30h
• Samsung S7710 Galaxy Xcover 2
  7:30h
• Sony Xperia ZR
  7:30h
• Samsung Galaxy Note I717
  7:30h
• Samsung Galaxy Core I8260
  7:30h
• Sony Xperia SP
  7:27h
• Motorola Moto G 4G
  7:27h
• HTC One mini
  7:23h
• Nokia Lumia 610
  7:23h
• LG Optimus G E975
  7:16h

The final tally shows a stunning 101-hour endurance rating for the Sony Xperia Z3 Compact. Small wonder with these individual times. And it's not just the battery capacity either - 40% more milliamp hours is a good start but the Z3 Compact opened up a bigger margin in some of the tests.

The Apple iPhone 6 and Samsung Galaxy Alpha have relatively similar endurance ratings but part of that is due to the efficient standby of the Galaxy Alpha. The iPhone beat it in two out of three tests with a decent margin.

Winner: Sony Xperia Z3 Compact. It will last you four days of moderate usage, two days of heavy usage and we can't imagine a scenario where you kill it in a day under normal usage.

Runner up: Apple iPhone 6. Getting two days of moderate usage will be a breeze. Even with heavy usage you'll still get two days, though it might die on the second day before the night is out.

Third place: Samsung Galaxy Alpha. It achieves good results with what it has but most of the time it won't make it through two full days of heavy usage.