Samsung Focus S vs HTC Inspire 4G: AT&T Smartphone War

Until recently, the Focus S was $200 with a new two year AT&T contract, but now that it's just $100 on their Web site, it is decision time. If your about to upgrade, the Focus S and Inspire 4G are a pair of 4.3-inch screen devices that may be on your radar. Focus S is a much newer device and on paper, it's the better buy, but it doesn't run the Android system. Focus S is one of the best Microsoft powered smartphones out there, and to add to the conundrum, HTC has not yet announced if Inspire 4G will get the Android 4.0 update. HTC has announced that several of their phones will get it, but Inspire 4G was not on the initial list. That means HTC either hasn't decided what they are going to do with it, or simply haven't announced it yet. Inspire 4G is nearly a year old, so it is right on the edge of being too old for Android 4.0, but that is why you are here.

Both the Focus S and Inspire 4G have eight megapixel cameras, but only the Focus S has a front facing camera as well. The displays are also similar size, but the Focus S has Samsung's patented Super AMOLED Plus technology for brighter colors and sharper contrast. That is where the similarities end, however, because the software each runs is totally different. Whether or not Inspire 4G gets the Android 4.0 update or not, it still has access to the Android Market and its 300,000 apps. The Microsoft mobile system is only about a year old, and while the Focus S is running the newest version, called Mango, the Microsoft Marketplace only has about 40,000 apps to choose from. The other thing that is very different between the systems is easy to notice just by looking at the homescreen. The Windows Phone system doesn't have the familiar app icons and instead uses dynamic tiles that have some of the main apps' functions rolled into a grid format. You can customize the tiles for whatever functions you want because Microsoft is trying to more closely integrate app functions with the system itself. Additionally, with the Windows Phone system, you get access to extra cloud storage and access to Xbox Live for mobile gaming.

If you're deciding between these two phones or any smartphones really, be sure to get over to the AT&T store to check them out for yourself. Tell us in the comments if think either of these devices are upgrade worthy.