With many devices rolling out, it's time to take a look at the top devices of the week: the Sony Xperia Z1 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 as well as the new contender, the newly unveiled iPhone 5S.

But more than a battle of specs comparison, it's also time to check out how they fare against their counterparts, namely the Sony Xperia Z, the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 and the iPhone 5, to see if you are getting your money's worth.

Sony Xperia Z1: A Driving Force in Smartphone Camera Technology

The Sony Xperia Z in itself is already a device that is worth the rave that it got when it was first released. Considering the many additions that the Sony Xperia Z1 received, this is truly one of the devices that you would consider a vast improvement and a necessary buy for those who want to enjoy the benefits.

For instance, Sony Xperia Z1 is now running on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 chipset and 2.2 GHz Krait 400 quad-core processor with the Sony Mobile BRAVIA Engine 2 to boot, making it the faster device, reported Online Gadgets Store.

The Sony Xperia Z1 also runs on the latest Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, though the Android 4.4 KitKat has been making some noise in the market recently. But it still carries the latest OS for now.

As for battery life, Sony has gone to great lengths on improving, pushing the expected 11 hours of 2G talk time and 14 hours on 3G on the Sony Xperia to 14 and 15 hours, respectively, on the Sony Xperia Z1, which is definitely a good boost of hours.

Finally, the biggest unveiled device would have to be the camera. While the Sony Xperia Z came out with one of the best cameras at 13 megapixel with LED flash and autofocus back then, the newer device has long surpassed that. The 20.7-megapixel of the Sony Xperia Z1 has a new sensor and feature support, along with attachable accessories to boost its zoom by 10x, making it a powerful camera.

In fact, even in very low light condition, it can stand up to the Nokia Lumia 925, coming out as the winner in camera comparison as reported by Recombu. The combination of sensors, modes and an overhauled UI makes it one of the smartphones worth the buy in the market today.

Already, there have been rumours that a mini is in the works, wherein the main difference only lies on the sizes of the devices.

According to Gadgets NDTV, the leaked images and rumours have already suggested that the Sony Xperia Z1 mini will have a 4.3-inch Triluminos 720p display, 2.3 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, 16 GB of storage plus expandable capabilities, 2400 mAh battery, and 2 GB of RAM. But what is also interesting is that the device will be rolling out the 20.7-megapixel camera of its predecessor.

iPhone 5S: A Refresh Phone, Nothing More

With leaks and rumours fueling the days before the big reveal of the iPhone 5S, most people thought that the iPhone 5S would not deliver anything special. And it is almost disappointing that the iPhone 5S did not do much to surprise its fans.

The only major upgrades for the iPhone 5S lies with the Touch ID, which is the security button that takes a hi-res photo of your fingerprint to analyze for easier access. Camera has also been upgraded in the iPhone 5S, adding in new f/2.2 aperture and 15 percent bigger sensor area, according to Mirror, for better photos.

Lastly, the new A7 processor is coming with the iPhone 5S, making it twice as fast as the iPhone 5, without charging for more than what you got the older model for.

Admittedly, these are good additions, but it seemed that some of what the market is expecting to change did not deliver. The screen size and resolution remained unchanged. Battery life was not improved, which makes you wonder how it will carry the new additions in processor, camera and the Touch ID.

CNet also added that storage was not dealt with for this model, so a 128 GB model is still not in the works.

Samsung Galaxy Note 3: Decked to Impress

There's a reason why Samsung has become quite a favorite at IFA 2013: it was able to deliver more than what was expected of it, starting with the Samsung Galaxy Note 3.

Kicking off with the improvement in design that makes it more polished and high end, it has added a faux leather back to get rid of the plastic-feel of the old Samsung Galaxy Note 2, perhaps a response to the ever-present criticism of looking like a cheap smartphone.

Those who are looking for a bigger and better display will love the 5.7-inch Super AMOLED display with a very high resolution of 1920 x 1080. According to Laptop Mag, the insides don't disappoint either because the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 now has a choice of two processors, the 2.3 GHz quadcore with LTE or 1.9 GHz octa-core processor with 3G.

The camera has also made quite a leap from the 8 megapixels on the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 to 13 megapixels for crisper photos.

Aside from improvements on the overall hardware, you also get new features with the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, including the improved TouchWiz, Drag and Drop to move around content between windows and new apps like MyMagazine.

The S Pen stylus wasn't neglected either, as it now allows for a number of commands for better multitasking. Indeed, Samsung's motto for innovation can be seen with each rolled out device, something that maybe Apple can now learn from, judging by what it has provided its fans with at its recent unveiling.

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