When Samsung launched its flagship Galaxy S5 earlier this year, it promised to up the specs, downplay the gimmicks, and offer a premium device that could stand up to the iPhone 5s in both capability and in its modern "glam" looks. After a couple weeks with the GS5, it's obvious Samsung has delivered on half of that admirably, but this year's iteration of Samsung's flagship Android smartphone still remains the anti-iPhone.

Basics: Is This 'Premium'?

The Galaxy S5 does many things very well, as the latest flagship from Samsung should, and it features several big improvements over my personal (and still) favorite Samsung device, the oft-maligned Galaxy S4.

But in its initial unveiling of the GS5, Samsung sounded like it was working on a refined iPhone-like flagship that could poach some Apple fans into the Android camp. The company said that with the GS5, it was going "back to basics," focusing on delivering "what matters most to consumers."

It obviously didn't hear the choruses of consumers crying out for a Galaxy S phone with a premium look and feel after the plastic GS4, or maybe it thought the GS5's softer plastic would be good enough.

Coming from someone who loves the GS4 -- that 100 percent smudge-prone, insubstantial-feeling, shiny polycarbonate slate -- I even have to say the GS5 fails to deliver in the look-and-feel department. Yes, it feels slightly more solid than the GS4 without being too heavy, but there seem to be few chassis improvements, and some design elements are left feeling unfinished or rushed:

The rear camera, just like with the GS4, still protrudes out the back, leading to lens-smash paranoia; the backlighting of the capacitive buttons (at least on the white model) actually bleeds beyond the icons; the faux metal rim protrudes uncomfortably around the touchscreen; and whatever extra grip you get out of the soft, plastic, dimpled back panel isn't worth being reminded of uncooked chicken whenever you look at it. (Again, maybe only on the white model; it also comes in black, blue, and gold.)

These might seem like quibbles -- and they are -- but they're design problems that iPhone users, who might be considering a switch, would likely find glaring. And they illustrate that, despite the hype, Samsung's devices are still more about functionality than form, and the GS5 represents no change in that priority.

Specs and Performance

The GS5 still can't compete in looks, but with this smartphone, Samsung is still doing what it does best: blazing fast performance on a brilliant screen with seemingly endless ways to personalize your use of the phone -- not to mention lots of bells and whistles, despite Samsung's purported "back to basics" approach.

The GS5 is powered by a quad-core Snapdragon 801 running at 2.5 GHz with 2GB RAM. For almost any uses, this is plenty, and it'll likely last you far into the future before feeling like it's lagging behind newer smartphones.

The display is still a Super AMOLED touchscreen running at 1080p full HD, which, while not an upgrade from the GS4, looks crisp and clear, with incredibly good contrast, great visibility in bright environments, and impressively wide visibility from any viewing angle you're likely to actually look at the screen from. However, pixel density on the screen took a little hit when Samsung nudged the GS5's screen up from the GS4's 5.0-inches to 5.1-inches (441 ppi vs. 432 ppi, respectively). And it's not quite clear why Samsung decided it needed to provide that extra screen real-estate, since it does make one-handed operation feel ever-slightly more unwieldy while noticeably expanding the GS5's overall footprint.