Galaxy W vs. Xperia Neo V: Vice Wersa

Introduction

Single-core droids will only be getting cheaper and there's plenty to choose from. But if you want to get the best out of a tight budget, making the right choice can prove to be a challenge. We're looking at two phones that launched at the same time and have very similar specs and price points. The Samsung Galaxy W and the Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo V are middle of the Android pack. There're many above them in the ranks but few are as easy to afford.

The Galaxy W currently costs slightly more, so we'll try and answer whether you get extra value or whether the Xperia Neo V is a real steal instead.

Before we put both phones through our battery of tests, we let them throw a few warm-up punches:

Samsung Galaxy W I8150 over Xperia Neo V

• Thinner (11.5mm vs. 13mm) and 11g lighter
• Faster processor: 1.4GHz over 1GHz
• DNSe sound enhancement technology
• Document editor over doc viewer

Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo V over Samsung Galaxy W

• Promised update to Android 4 Ice Cream Sandwich
• microHDMI port over no TV-Out
• Slightly higher-res screen: FWVGA (480x854) vs. WVGA (480x800)
• Scratch-resistant glass
• Currently cheaper

It seems the Xperia Neo V has a couple of advantages that catch the eye, the ICS update and HDMI port being most notable. That's a great start for the cheaper phone.

However, the Galaxy W hasn't given up trying to justify the extra cost. It's got a faster processor packed in a thinner body and dedicated sound-enhancing technology to boot.

Samsung Galaxy W I8150 • Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo V

It's hard to tell which way image quality and screen performance will swing. A few terse specs (WVGA, 720p) don't tell the whole story. So, without further ado, let's run the tests and see which phone comes out on top.