HTC One S vs Samsung Galaxy S2

We see how HTC's One S ‘hero' phone compares to Samsung's champion, the Galaxy S2.

Form
Samsung Galaxy S2 - 125.3x66.1x8.5mm, 116g

HTC One S - 130.9x65x7.8mm, 119.5g

Samsung's Galaxy S2 and HTC's One S couldn't be more different in terms of visual design. While the Galaxy S2 is a very stark rectangular slab, the HTC One S bears some similarity to the Galaxy Nexus with its gently sweeping lines and curves.

HTC has come up with a very progressive and stylish looking design, there's a thin bezel of bodywork around the edge of a contoured black panel which sits in the middle of the phone and houses the touchscreen. On the light grey coloured model this looks particularly striking.

The Galaxy S2 doesn't have any nifty tricks but its simple design is elegant enough without them and its flattering proportions speak for themselves.

In other words the Galaxy S2 doesn't need to be flashy: it just looks good.

HTC has produced the thinner of the two handsets at 7.8mm to Samsung's 8.5mm, though the use of lightweight plastics in the Galaxy S2 means it weighs less at 116g to the One S's 119.5g.

We don't feel that one handset has the edge over the other here. While some users may be staunchly in one camp or the other aesthetically, we actually like both squared-off and curved form factors. The important thing is the execution and here it is all very well done.

Winner - Draw

Display
Both handsets feature 4.3-inch multi-touch capacitive displays and use Corning's Gorilla Glass to provide a bit of extra durability.

HTC has implemented Samsung's Super AMOLED technology in the One S and its screen sports a 540x960 pixel resolution giving a pixel density of 256 pixels-per-inch (ppi).

Samsung is, of course, also using its own screen tech for the Galaxy S2, this time, however, it's Super AMOLED Plus for a little extra visual ‘oomph'. The resolution isn't as high as HTC's though at 480x800 pixels, which also means the pixel density comes in lower at 217ppi.

Both are very competent display offerings but the HTC One S will offer a much sharper image quality for a more satisfying experience.

Winner - HTC One S

Storage
The Galaxy S2 has three storage variants with either 16GB or 32GB of internal space, depending on which you go for, either option also has 1GB of RAM and a micro SD slot which can take cards up to 32GB in capacity.

The HTC One S has 16GB of onboard storage and the same 1GB of RAM as its opponent, though unfortunately there's no card capability to be found.

Samsung's Galaxy S2 is still the top dog in this contest with more built-in storage and card capability to boot.

Winner - Samsung Galaxy S2