Samsung, the giant Korean electronics company, has recently launched a new Smartphone called Galaxy Grand Neo Plus. It is a budget Smartphone with a large 5 inch display. Actually, it is a successor of the earlier Galaxy Grand Neo that became very popular in India. As it is a major upgrade to Grand Neo, it obviously contains new features and higher specifications than Grand Neo. However, it has been priced lower at Rs. 9990 to lure budget conscious people. The new handset is actually a move by Samsung to compete with the likes of Yu Yuphoria and Canvas Nitro 2. Let us see how Grand Neo Plus compares with its older sibling Grand Neo.
DESIGN FACTOR
Samsung Galaxy Grand New Plus may be a new smartphone from the stable of Samsung but it is actually only an upgrade of Grand Neo that was launched in January 2014. This is why it looks like a replica of Grand Neo. Both smartphones have the same candy bar design with even very identical dimensions. Both Neo and Neo Plus have dimensions of 143.7 x 77.1 x 9.5mm even though Neo Plus is 3 g lighter at 160g.
OPERATING SYSTEM
It is only natural for Samsung to fit the latest operating system in its new smartphone. This is the reason why Galaxy Grand Neo works on Android v 4.2, also called Jelly Bean whereas the new Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo Plus runs on latest Android v 4.4, known as KitKat.
PROCESSING POWER
Samsung has cleverly made no change in the processor and the GPU of Grand Neo series and kept both same in its new smartphone. These smartphones are fitted with the same 1.2 GHz quad core processor from Cortex A-7. Thus there is no difference in performance as they operate at the same speed.
RAM AND MEMORY
Both Galaxy Grand Neo as well as Grand Neo Plus have the same RAM of 1 GB that is at best modest when compared to latest smartphones. As far as internal memory is concerned, many people will be disappointed that the new Neo Plus has only 8 GB of storage capacity whereas Neo had 16 GB of internal memory. However, memory can be expanded up to 64 GB using micro SD cards as was the case with Neo.
DISPLAY (SCREEN)
Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo Plus has a screen size of 5 inches which is same as that of Grand Neo. Both smart phones produce same resolution of 480X800 pixels that is not much when one looks at new smartphones being sold in the market. Both phones have the same capacitive touch screens that are quite responsive.
CAMERA POWER
Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo is fitted with a 5MP rear camera that can take high resolution (2592X1944pixels). It is equipped with LED flash and autofocus feature. It can also record HD videos in 720p. It also has a secondary front camera that is 0.3MP and can capture videos in VGA. On the other hand, though Samsung has not made any changes in the rear camera of Grand Neo Plus, it has certainly improved its front camera. It is now 2MP and can capture high resolution images and videos. It is certainly good news for all those who are fond of taking selfies and video chatting.
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BATTERY POWER
Despite launching Neo Plus after a gap of one year, Samsung has not made any change in the battery of this smartphone. It is fitted with the same 2100mAh removable battery that is there in Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo. Both smartphones can give a talk time of up to 11 hours on 3G.
CONNECTIVITY FEATURES
Both Samsung Grand Neo and Grand Neo plus are Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, GPS with A-GPS, and have micro USBv2.0 slots. Surprisingly the feature of DLNA is absent in Neo Plus whereas it is there in Neo. There is no HDMI port in both phones and they also do not have NFC feature. The only new additions in Grand Neo Plus are ambient light sensor and gyroscope that were not there in Grand Neo. But Grand Neo had a compass which is missing in Neo Plus.
PRICE COMPARISON
This is one aspect of Grand Neo Plus that will be pleasing for the price sensitive consumers in the Indian market. It is priced at Rs. 9999 which is about a thousand Rupees less than its older sibling. It s on the basis of its sub 10000 Rupees price that Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo Plus would be able to compete with the likes of Canvas Nitro 2 and Yu Yureka.
CONCLUSION
Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo Plus may be a new smartphone from the stable of Samsung but it is more or less similar in features and specifications to the older Grand Neo. Samsung has made only a few changes here and there in Grand Neo and introduced it as Grand Neo Plus. The only consolation for the consumers is its lower price tag that will attract Indian consumers who are looking for a branded Smartphone in the sub Rs. 10000 price range.
Galaxy Grand Neo Plus has a better and improved front camera than Grand Neo. It is a welcome move by the company as it makes this new smartphone a better choice for shutter bugs and those who like to take selfies. Grand Neo Plus has a 2MP front camera whereas Neo had just 0.3MP front camera that captured images that were not very clear and it could only make scratchy videos.
One more feature in which Galaxy Grand Neo Plus scores heavily against Grand Neo is its operating system. Whereas Grand Neo ran on older Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, the new Grand Neo Plus runs on the more recent Android Kit Kat to make it a very attractive option for all those looking for latest Android smartphone with mid-range specifications. However, for all those who have used Galaxy Grand Neo, it would not be a prudent move to switch on to Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo Plus as it has only a few cosmetic changes.
