LG Optimus G Pro vs. Samsung Galaxy Note II: Sumo wrestling

Connectivity

Both phones have quad-band 2G connectivity. The Optimus G Pro supports dual-band HSPA, while the Samsung Galaxy Note II has a version with tri-band (N7105) and a version quad-band (N7100) support. Depending on which Note II model you get, you either receive HSDPA speed of 21 Mbps (N7100) or 42 Mbps (N7105). The Optimus G Pro HSDPA goes as high as 42Mbps.

The Galaxy Note II N7105 also supports quad-band LTE cat.3. The Optimus G Pro also features LTE cat.3 connectivity, but there is no official info on the supported bands.

Local wireless connectivity is almost identical - dual-band Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 and NFC are all supported. Both phones offer more advanced features too - DLNA, Android Beam and Wi-Fi Direct.

Both phones support HD TV-Out too via the microUSB MHL support. Unfortunately, the compatible HDMI MHL cable for Note II won't work on the Optimus G Pro and vice versa. There's also USB On-The-Go support, which means you can connect various USB peripherals - mice, keyboards and USB storage.

Winner: Tie. As long as you get the N7105 version of the Note II you will enjoy the same high-speed data transfers as on the Optimus G Pro.

Audio quality is a tie, both phones are clean but quiet

Both the Samsung Galaxy Note II and the LG Optimus G Pro posted some excellent scores in our audio quality test. The Note II is a tiny bit cleaner and a notch louder, but the differences a really hard to detect with a naked ear.

Even when we plugged a pair of headphones, the output stayed impressively close (and good). Of course, the stereo crosstalk reading takes a hit on both phones, more notably on the Galaxy Note II. Still, both phones provide solid and on par performance even with the headphones plugged in.

And here go the results so you can see how these two compare for yourselves.

Test	Frequency response	Noise level	Dynamic range	THD	IMD + Noise	Stereo crosstalk
LG Optimus G Pro	+0.48, -0.11	-81.7	82.0	0.010	0.028	-80.7
LG Optimus G Pro (headphones attached)	+0.31, -0.27	-81.1	81.1	0.0097	0.052	-66.2
Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100	+0.03, -0.04	-90.2	90.1	0.0098	0.016	-90.7
Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100 (headphones attached)	+0.11, -0.06	-90.1	89.2	0.0067	0.034	-55.3

LG Optimus G Pro frequency response

Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100 frequency response

You can learn more about the whole testing process here.

Winner: Tie. The Samsung Galaxy Note II has a tiny advantage, but it will be very hard to detect without lab equipment, so you should be equally happy with both.

Loudspeaker performance on par

Even though the Samsung Galaxy Note II was 7+ db louder than the LG Optimus G Pro when playing the old-fashioned phone ringing ringtone, it wasn't enough to push up the Note II higher than a Good score, which is the exact same rating as the LG Optimus G Pro.

Speakerphone test	Voice, dB	Pink noise/ Music, dB	Ringing phone, dB	Overall score
Sony Xperia Z	60.1	58.3	61.6	Below Average
Apple iPhone 5	66.8	66.1	67.7	Below Average
HTC One X+	64.6	65.8	74.6	Average
LG Optimus 4X HD	68.7	66.6	79.3	Good
LG Optimus G Pro	72.7	66.6	72.7	Good
Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III	75.1	66.5	75.0	Good
Samsung Note II N7100	70.0	66.6	80.5	Good
Motorola RAZR XT910	74.7	66.6	82.1	Very Good
LG Optimus G	74.6	71.3	82.7	Excellent

You can learn more about our loudspeaker testing procedures here.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Note II (only just). In terms of loudness, the Note II seems to have a small advantage when playing back high-pitched tones, but it's a pretty close call otherwise.