An obvious distinction is the vast, 5-inch super AMOLED Full HD screen. With the same overall dimensions as the Galaxy S3, 136.6mm x 69.8mm x 7.9mm, the larger screen means the bezel is much narrower, giving the phone a very futuristic look.

As with the S3, the S4 has a polycarbonate chassis and a removable battery cover, under which you will find a microSD slot. A metal band wraps around the edges of the phone, giving it a substantial feel.

With so many apps and functions, it is often easy to forget that the Galaxy S4 is a Smartphone, but it is in just this basic function that the S4 is a great performer. Signal strength is impressive and with in-built noise reduction, call clarity is never a problem with the S4

The user interface, TouchWiz, is built on Android Jelly Bean 4.2 and with a quad core Qualcomm 600 CPU running at 1.9 GHz and 2 GB RAM the Galaxy S4 certainly is fast. Together, the software and hardware provides an interface that is simple, intuitive and powerful.

The camera in the S4 is a delight which will impress the most avid photographer. With 13-megapixel capacity, picture quality is excellent, as you would expect. Samsung has built in a number of preset modes that are easily accessible and has been sensible enough not to include too many of these.

A novel idea is the ability to take pictures using the front and rear cameras simultaneously, although how often you would want to see your own face in the picture remains to be seen.

As a media device, the Galaxy S4 scores well, although it seems a shame that Samsung decided to remove the FM radio option for the S4, a popular feature in the S3. That said, there are a number of radio apps available to replace it.

The rear speaker has been upgraded in the S4 to provide richer bass tones, so listening without earphones is a more pleasurable experience. Not home theatre quality, but better than before.

So in the Samsung Galaxy S4 you get the best screen on offer in a smartphone, an excellent camera and a powerful processor coupled with an intuitive and fast user interface.

You will not get a metal chassis, but the polycarbonate shell of the S4 is robust and the Gorilla Glass 3 screen offers enough toughness. Besides, you will probably put it in a protective case anyway.