Samsung Galaxy Note 3 vs LG G2: Specs, Price, Availability, Features, and Hardware Showdown

In which the new LG G2 and Samsung Galaxy Note 3 are compared. 

Two phones with screens bigger than 5-inches have been unveiled in the last few weeks and will be hitting major U.S. carriers starting in October: The LG G2 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. Both represent slightly unorthodox ways of interacting with an Android phone, but in different ways. Both also offer next-generation hardware that can beat most smartphones that are currently on the market. Let's run though a comparison the two and see which is the better deal. It's the smartphone showdown and this time it's LG G2 vs Galaxy Note 3.

Display

Samsung's Galaxy Note series has been branded "phablets" - a term that means a cross between a phone and a tablet - but if the Galaxy Note 3 is a phablet, it's one of the smaller ones. With a 5.7-inch screen, the Galaxy Note 3 comes well under competitors like the Xperia Z Ultra (6.4-inch) or the upcoming HTC One Max's ~6-inch screen, as well as other Samsung devices like the 6.3-inch Galaxy Mega. That's by design though, as the Galaxy Note 3 is actually lighter and slimmer than its 5.5-inch predecessor, the Galaxy Note 2, while packing 1080 x 1920p Full HD resolution at a respectable 386 pixels per inch.

The LG G2, meanwhile, offers a 5.2-inch display, which LG Electronics says is the biggest screen that an average hand can operate comfortably. That puts the LG G2 close to the Galaxy Note 3, while making it more of a large smartphone than a small phablet. The LG G2 also comes in a 1080 x 1920p, with a higher pixel density of 424 pixels per inch because of its slightly more diminutive screen. The verdict goes to the LG G2, if you're not looking for a large two-hand display.

Speed

Both the LG G2 and the Galaxy Note 3 come with the latest Qualcomm system on a chip. The LG G2 comes with a quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, clocked at 2.26GHz with an Adreno 330 GPU and 2GB of RAM. That's one of the fastest chips (soon to be) on the market right now, but it's bested by the Galaxy Note 3, which, to be fair, is powering a larger screen with the same system on a chip. The Galaxy Note 3 comes with a quad core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, clocked at 2.3GHz with an Adreno 330 GPU, but it comes with 3GB of RAM - a first for any mobile device in that category. Both will come with 4G LTE speeds, and no matter which device you get, you're going to have a fluid, lightning fast user experience.

Cameras

The LG G2 comes with a 13-megapixel main camera, which includes LED flash and autofocus. It can shoot 1080p video up to 60 frames per second on the main camera, and it comes with a secondary front facing shooter that has 2.1-megapixels and shoots 1080p video at 30 fps. However, the Galaxy Note 3 comes with a 13-megpixel camera that is capable of much more. It can shoot 2160p "4K video" at 30 frames per second, and 1080p at 60 fps, with a 2-megapixel front facing shooter. The verdict, however, is still out for a couple reasons. The first is that 4K video is still in its infancy, and there's no practical immediate advantage to being able to shoot video at that rate (plus there's the disadvantage of eating up storage space, plus likely having to compress it down to a lower rate anyway, unless you're a videography buff with an expensive monitor or television set). The second reason is that the Samsung Galaxy Note 3's camera is yet to be fully benchmarked, so we'll have to wait and see. In any case, if you're getting an LG G2 or Samsung Galaxy Note 3, you'll have one of the best cameras on the market (except, of course, for the camera-focused Sony and Nokia smartphones).

Storage

Speaking of storage space, the Galaxy Note 3 clearly wins over the LG G2 in this respect. Coming with only 16GB or 32GB of internal storage - and no microSD expansion - the LG G2 is a disappointment. Meanwhile, Samsung dropped its 16GB storage option for the Galaxy Note this year, because if you're using a flagship, you should have enough storage for high-quality media and lots of apps. That means the Galaxy Note 3 comes, at minimum with the LG G2's maximum storage of 32GB, and there's a 64GB model as well. Oh, and there's a microSD card slot for 64GB more of media storage.

Other Hardware

The LG G2 comes with a hardware feature that no other smartphone has, which LG Electronics is calling the "Rear Key." It's a volume rocker on the back of the device, placed right where your pointer finger rests when you're talking on the phone. If you like a unique form factor for your smartphones, you might be interested in the LG G2.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Note 3 features the S Pen, which is Samsung's unique interaction feature that makes the device more of a notebook smartphone than a small phablet. And this year, the S Pen got a big upgrade, turning it into a multitasking monster. Now, from any screen or app, you can bring up a menu of options for the S Pen for making memos, copying items to a scrapbook, or hand-writing information which then gets automatically analyzed and translated into the right apps or settings screens.

Both devices come with a battery of 3,000 mAh or more, NFC, WiFi, Bluetooth, and, of course LTE bands.

OS, Price, and Availability

The LG G2 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 are launching in October over most of the U.S.'s major carriers, including AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint. Expect the Galaxy Note 3 to hit stores a little before the LG G2, but at a higher cost as well. Most carriers are setting a two-year contract price of about $250 for the Galaxy Note 3, while the G2 is coming in at a maximum of $200 on contract. However, the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 will feature Android 4.3, while the LG G2 lags behind with Android 4.2.2. Overall, if you want a workhorse of a smartphone and are not afraid of handling a slightly awkward 5.7-inch screen, go for the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. It's the most future-proof smartphone to date, and can pair with the Galaxy Gear smartwatch (if you're into that kind of thing). Meanwhile, the LG G2 would look like a great large premium smartphone with unique features and abilities, but given the time it was unveiled, it should have come with the current Jelly Bean operating system.

In addition - LG Electronics, if you're only going to offer a maximum of 32GB storage (and less than that after factory-installed software), at least give it a microSD card slot so users can expand the storage a little bit.