For those considering buying a smartphone this festive season, here is a specs face off between the Sony Xperia ZL and the Samsung Galaxy S4. This comparison could help readers make a more informed decision.

Design and Display

In terms of screen size both the Sony Xperia ZL and the Samsung Galaxy S4 come with a 5-inch screen and both screens render 1,080 x 1,920 pixel resolution. There are, however, a few differences in body design.

The Sony Xperia ZL comes with 131.6 x 69.3 x 9.8 mm dimensions and is slightly heavier, weighing about 151 grams. The Samsung Galaxy S4 comes with 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9 mm dimensions and weighs about 130 grams.

Hardware and Operating System

There is very little difference between the two phones in terms of computing power. The Sony Xperia ZL comes with a quad core 1.5 GHz Krait processor. It has 2 GB of RAM and comes with 16 GB internal memory; the memory can be expanded by up to 64 GB using a Micro SD card.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 comes with the quad core 1.6 GHz cortex-A15 or the quad core 1.2 GHz cortex-A7 processor. It also comes with a 2 GB RAM and comes in 16, 32 and 64 GB internal memory variants; the memory can be expanded using a micro SD card by up to 64 GB.

Camera

Both the Sony Xperia ZL and the Samsung Galaxy S4 come with a 13-MP primary camera with features like auto focus and LED flash. The secondary camera on both the devices is 2 MP.

Battery

There is a slight difference in battery between the two devices. The Sony Xperia ZL comes with a non-removable Li-Ion 2370 mAh battery. It allows for up to 13 hours of talk time on 3G.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 comes with a slightly better Li-Ion 2600 mAh battery, it allows for a talk time of up to 17 hours on 3G.

If you want a Samsung device with a better battery life than the S4, you might want to check out the world's first smartphone with a curved display. Click here to see the images of the new device and read about its Roll feature.

Prices in Australia

The Sony Xperia ZL with 16-GB internal memory is priced at around AU $469. The Samsung Galaxy S4 16-GB variant is priced at around AU $639.95 and the 32-GB variant is priced at around AU $899.95.