Samsung’s response to Apple’s latest flagship always arrives a few months later. In this case, it’s the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge to fight Apple’s iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus. But how does it compare?
Last year, the Galaxy S6 offered a big change in design to Samsung’s flagship smartphone, but, after a full review, Android Beat discovered that issues with performance and battery made the phone a hard sell for long-term use, even with plenty of other benefits. This year, the publication has put the Galaxy S7 edge to the test, trying to determine if Samsung’s minor, yet impactful updates for this year’s flagship make it a device worth owning.
Starting off with the display, Android Beat says that all of the features that Samsung ties into it, plus its color accuracy and attention to detail thanks to the Super AMOLED technology make it one of the best displays available in a smartphone to date:
“The brightness levels, accuracy, color reproduction (customisable), contrast levels, and viewing angles of the display are top-notch, and the 5.5-inch Super AMOLED panel on the Galaxy S7 edge is easily among the best displays available for smartphones in the market right now.”
However, the Galaxy S7 edge’s “edge” display is, apparently, still just a gimmick in the long run, and while it does make the device look thinner than it really is, it’s still just a novelty versus adding any real functionality:
“The ‘edge’ display on the Galaxy S7 edge is nothing more than a gimmick though. It does a good job of making the phone look slimmer than it actually is, but I have found little use of it. Sure, Samsung has vastly improved its edge UX since last year, but even now, the ‘edge’ is worth your money because of the novelty it carries and not because of the functionality it offers.”
As is par for the course when it comes to Samsung and an Android device, the company has put plenty of customized software on the handset, and this year is no different. Fortunately for the Galaxy S7 edge, it’s not nearly as hindered by bloatware or other tweaks to limit the usability of the handset, and performance doesn’t appear to take any hits for the proprietary software, either:
“More importantly, unlike previous years, there are no random lags or performance issues plaguing Samsung’s skin here. I am not sure if it is because of the raw horsepower offered by the Exynos 8890 chipset and the 4GB RAM or the optimisation done by Samsung, but whatever the case might be, the Galaxy S7 edge finally performs how a true flagship handset should.”
And, moreover, the overall performance of the handset, thanks to its powerful innards, is top-notch:
“Thankfully, all that raw horsepower translates into a super smooth Android experience — something which previous flagship devices from Samsung have failed to deliver. I am not sure if this is due to the brute horsepower of the Exynos 8890 chip or the optimisations done by Samsung, but whatever the case might be, the Galaxy S7 edge does not suffer from any random lags or other performance issues.”
One major area of the Galaxy S7 edge is its camera, which offers a 12-megapixel shooter. While Samsung dropped the megapixel count down from the Galaxy S6 edge, the change is apparently a welcomed one, as the camera on the company’s new flagship is very impressive, easy to use, and responsive. And it takes great photos, too.
“While the resolution of the camera is slightly lower than the Galaxy S6, the increased pixel size and wider aperture should make the Galaxy S7 edge a terrific low-light shooter. And it is. Taking pictures on the Galaxy S7 edge is such a pleasant experience that very few smartphones can match. The camera app opens quickly, and is accessible from almost anywhere thanks to the double-press home button shortcut.”
All-in-all, it sounds like Samsung’s Galaxy S7 edge is one of the best Android-based smartphones you can buy right now, and, moreover, sounds like a worthy improvement in all the right ways from last year’s model:
“Most importantly, no performance issues and great battery life means that the Galaxy S7 edge should age far better than its predecessors. And when combined with the 12MP rear shooter and the beautiful glass design, the Galaxy S7 edge is easily among the best Android smartphones out there — provided you have the money to burn.”
So, what do you think of the Galaxy S7 edge? Do you know anyone that has one, and if so, have you tried it out yet? You can check out Android Beat‘s full review of Samsung’s newest flagship through the link below.
