Samsung took into account all the mistakes of previous models and implemented successful technical ideas in its new flagship smartphone, which were warmly greeted by the public, who could hardly wait for the release date of the new product. The new gadget differs from previous versions by increased performance, RAM capacity and a new high-quality camera. Moreover, this is not all the innovations. The output turned out to be impressive, and the new Samsung Galaxy phone is truly excellent and can easily claim the title of “best smartphone of 2016.” The price of Samsung Galaxy S7 in online stores starts from $620 and varies depending on modifications. Let's study the Galaxy review and analyze in detail the characteristics and description of the smartphone to prove whether the stated price is worth the money.
In what modifications is it sold in the CIS?
The review should start with the fact that the new smartphone is available in several modifications depending on the regions of sale. So, for example, the processors used will be different for owners from America or Europe. There are 3 main models on our market with the following descriptions, which can be found on sale from their release date:
- Galaxy S7 SM-G930F. Standard version with slot for 1 SIM and microSD;
- Galaxy S7 Duos SM-G930FD. Dual-SIM version, which has an additional slot for a second SIM;
- Galaxy S7 Edge. An improved DS model with an increased screen diagonal of 5 inches and a battery capacity of 3600 mAh. Costs $100 more.
The body colors are available in white, silver and black. The contents of all modifications of the Galaxy S7 in the box are the same:
- power unit;
- micro-USD cable;
- USB-OTG adapter;
- headphones;
- user manual
The phone has the ability to insert additional internal memory into 32GB or 64 GB.
Separately, I would like to note the USB adapter, which will allow you to connect your smartphone to external drives, batteries and other peripheral devices. This is an insignificant thing, but for many owners it becomes one of the most useful.
Appearance
Samsung Galaxy S7 combines pleasant ergonomics and a strict, stylish look, both in white and in other colors. There are no unnecessary details here, and all available ones are thought out to the last detail. The front and back panels of the phone are made of glass.
The waterproof case is made according to IP68 technology without the use of removable plugs. The device can withstand a drop into water up to 2 meters deep with open ports and connectors, and then continue to work calmly.
To protect the case there is a metal frame around the perimeter. The edges on the back panel have a slightly beveled appearance. This is done to improve ergonomics and ease of use with one hand. The main camera lens looks good and does not stick out even on the white model. On the right side of it there is an LED flash, pulse sensors and SpO2 blood oxygen saturation sensors.
The earpiece is located just above the display and has high sound quality. Next to it there is a front camera and a proximity sensor. Below the display on the edges there are two touch buttons “Back” and “Application Manager”. Between them there is a mechanical “Home” button with a fingerprint scanner.
Screen sizes with 5.1 inch diagonal reveal the full potential of the device, but do not affect the dimensions and ease of use. The streamlined body allows you to always place the phone comfortably in your hand and easily reach the upper left corner with your thumb. At the same time, the phone does not cut into the palm.
For those who find the display large and uncomfortable when working with one hand, there are two control modes. One of them moves the push-button interface and keyboard to the lower corner for more convenient dialing and text processing. The second mode provides for a complete transfer of the interface to the lower part (activation occurs by triple pressing the “Home” button).
Screen with rich image
Samsung Galaxy S7 uses a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED Quad HD display with a QHD resolution of 2560x1440. The pixel density parameters are 577 ppi. Additionally, the screen is covered with anti-reflective protective glass Gorilla Glass 4. The size of the display ensures ideal detail and color reproduction. Any picture and video looks truly realistic.
Samsung really managed to perfect their technologies and put them into the characteristics of a flagship smartphone. No matter how hard you try, it is impossible to find flaws in the description. Every element and display option deserves applause. Brightness, contrast, shades and color rendering quality are all excellent.
The AMOLED display has advanced image brightness adjustment capabilities. The matrix is capable of demonstrating both maximum saturation and reducing it to a minimum for those who are accustomed to IPS displays. New adaptive brightness control technology takes into account the light level using sensors and selects the optimal parameters for comfortable work. At the same time, the Galaxy S7 remembers manual brightness settings and automatically offers them to the owner under the same conditions.
MHL (Mobile High Definition Link) technology allows you to connect your smartphone to a TV or monitor to broadcast video in FullHD resolution via HDMI and MicroUSB ports.
The new Always ON feature allowed the display to display the necessary information when locked. At the same time, energy consumption on the battery is minimal. Autonomous power supply of each pixel in the AMOLED display allows you to highlight only the working areas when the rest of the screen remains black.
The best camera in smartphones
But here I want to stand up and applaud the creators. Samsung made a first-class camera for seventh generation smartphones. The company did not participate in the senseless race of competitors for megapixels, but thoroughly improved the quality and functionality of shooting, having worked on every element.
The main camera uses a Sony IMX260 module on 12 MP. This sensor is designed exclusively for the Galaxy S7 and is not used in other devices. Compared to previous versions of Samsung smartphones, the camera resolution has dropped slightly, but this makes it possible to obtain higher-quality photos and videos when shooting at night by increasing the physical size of the pixels. The new sensor uses enhanced phase detection autofocus with Dual Pixel technology, which uses both photodiodes on each pixel of the matrix. Due to this, the camera is able to instantly focus under any shooting conditions. Once launched, the smartphone is ready to take high-quality photos in less than 1 second. Additionally, I would like to note the “Panorama” mode, which makes it possible to stitch together photos and obtain full-size images in a resolution of 38 megapixels.
Front camera on 5 MP takes great selfies. The phone interface has many functions for processing and improving the resulting photos: color correction, improving skin texture or background detail. You can always download additional processing modes and functions from the Samsung store.
Video recording occurs in Ultra HD resolution. In standard video recording mode, the frame rate is 60 FPS. Slow motion mode allows you to increase the rate to 240 FPS, but the video resolution will drop to HD. All videos are clear and smooth. The optical stabilization function eliminates any interference, and the enabled HDR mode always ensures realistic color reproduction, even in bright sunshine.
All this allows us to safely call the Galaxy S7 camera one of the best in the new generation of phones. It is capable of capturing any scene, even in low light levels.
Specifications
The Samsung Galaxy S7 smartphone for sale in Russia and Europe is equipped with a 64-bit Samsung Exynos 8890 Octa processor with ARM BIG.LITTLE architecture (analogous to Snapdragon) based on Android OS. The chipset is made according to the 14 NM process technology with 8 cores: 4 Mongoose 2.3 GHz cores (Samsung’s own development) and 4 Cortex-A53 1.6 GHz cores. LPDDR4 standard RAM is 4 GB. Additionally, the Galaxy S7 provides the ability to install internal memory on 32GB or 64 GB. It uses the UHS 2.0 standard - the fastest for the internal memory of mobile devices. At the moment there are no analogues to it in terms of quality and speed.
The gadget has a full set of modern wireless interfaces and functions: Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.2, NFC, ANT+. Data transfer capabilities via LTE are limited only by the cellular operator. The sound in the headphones is capable of transmitting a rich range of low and high frequencies.
Samsung has returned the ability to use a microSD slot, so if desired, you can install memory cards with capacities of up to 200 GB. As mentioned earlier, for collaboration with external drives, the Galaxy S7 includes a USB OTG adapter.
The top-end processor together with the MALI-T880 MP12 graphics module based on Android Nougat 7.0 will launch any application and the latest gaming innovations. With the Galaxy S7, you can safely forget what “medium” or “low” graphics settings are when playing games. The Anututu Benchmark test proved that the smartphone can easily cope with any load.
Accumulator battery
Galaxy S7 uses a non-removable battery with a capacity 3000 mAh. The fast charging function Quick Charge 2.0 allows you to charge your smartphone up to 65% in 30 minutes. The developers have optimized the phone's power consumption, which makes it possible to work with applications and the active screen 30% more. With continuous loads and games in applications at maximum graphics, the operating time will be more than 10 hours. You can watch FullHD videos at maximum brightness in Airplane mode for over 14 hours before requiring additional charging.
Bottom line
And finally, let’s finish the review with conclusions on the characteristics, according to which we can safely say that the mobile phone turned out to be of high quality and multifunctional, so many were not in vain waiting for its release date. With the Galaxy S7, Samsung confirmed its leadership title and released a truly worthy and versatile phone that demonstrates all the achievements in the world of mobile technology. Stylish design, pleasant ergonomics, high performance, lightning speed and an amazing camera - this is just the “tip of the iceberg” that Samsung's flagship phone can boast of. Galaxy S7 costs 620$ , however, the price is completely worth it. The smartphone is suitable for those who want to receive only the best and are not ready to use second-rate devices.
Samsung is Apple's most worthy competitor. Devices from this Korean brand are in great demand and popularity among users. Samsung Galaxy S7 is no exception. The smartphone will appeal to lovers of minimalism and huge capabilities in one device. Samsung Galaxy S7 is a “pumped up” version of the Galaxy S6, as it has absorbed all its advantages and got rid of its shortcomings.
Samsung Galaxy S7 Package Contents
The Samsung Galaxy S7 package includes:
- smartphone;
- Charger;
- USB cable with adapters;
- instructions;
- branded headset;
- SIM tray clip.
Appearance and dimensions of Samsung Galaxy S7
The design of the flagship is classic and has many similarities with the old model - Galaxy S6. Its main difference is the beveled rounded edges. Samsung decided not to make their product too big, but not to make it too small either. The screen diagonal of the regular Galaxy S7 is 5.1 inches, and the S7 Edge model is 5.5 inches. The flagship is equipped with 2.5D protective glass, which makes the device visually flatter. This design looks quite nice and is user-friendly.
Samsung Galaxy S7 received a new color scheme for products in this series. The entire body is made in calm shades. It is completely matte and does not have the metallic effect that was observed in the S6. The user can choose one of the following color variations:
- Gold Platinum;
- Silver Titanium;
- Black Onyx;
- White Peral.
The main camera no longer protrudes above the surface of the body. The Home key is made of matte plastic and is much softer to press. It is located on the same level as the building itself. The power and volume buttons have become narrow and user-friendly.
Main dimensions of the device:
- Length - 142.4 mm;
- Width - 69.6 mm;
- Thickness - 8 mm.
Samsung Galaxy S7 display
Samsung developers try to equip gadgets with reliable and high-quality display models. In the new flagship, the screen has an excellent maximum brightness level and adjustable contrast.
In normal mode, the matrix is not much different from the old Galaxy S6 model. The image is clear and bright. In the “Basic” mode, the user will be able to apply many settings related to the quality of the picture displayed on the display.
The main feature of the Samsung Galaxy S7 is the always-on display. All indicators are displayed in black and white and do not disappear from the smartphone screen. Super AMOLED technology allows you to save a significant amount of energy. This way, when black color is displayed, the smartphone does not consume battery power.
Samsung Galaxy S7 display specifications:
- Diagonal - 5.1 inches;
- Maximum resolution - 2560x1440 pixels;
- Brightness level - up to 340 cd/m^2;
- Color coverage - 100% sRGB;
- Gamma - 2.4;
- Color temperature - 6600 K.
Sound of Samsung Galaxy S7
The phone's audio system has remained virtually unchanged. All speakers have excellent volume and sound clarity.
Unfortunately, such a device is not suitable for professional work with audio files, but the gadget copes well with telephone conversations. If we compare the Galaxy S7 and S6 in everyday tasks, their sound is almost identical and does not raise any complaints.
Samsung Galaxy S7 components
For fast and trouble-free operation, this device has some of the best components.
CPU
Samsung decided to install the best central processor for mobile devices in this device, which is called Snapgradon 820. For users from Europe and Russia, models with a proprietary CPU from Samsung - Exynos 8890 will be provided. It received custom high-performance Mongoose cores. Thanks to the new technical process, the processor has become fast, cool and economical.
Graphics adapter
The video adapter of this gadget, like the processor, is one of the best and easily copes with all the new gaming products. For maximum performance, the Samsung Galaxy S7 is equipped with a top-end Mali-T880 MP12 video accelerator from ARM. The new video adapter is 80% faster than the one installed in the Galaxy S6. The level of performance in games surpasses even the iPhone 6S.
RAM and internal storage
The developers decided not to make any special changes to the storage subsystem of the device. The Galaxy S6 had 4 GB of RAM and remains the same as the new product. Its volume is enough for all tasks performed on a smartphone.
Samsung has decided to return the ability to install a micro-SD drive. The developers say that although UFS 2.0 internal memory is much faster than a regular flash drive, an additional removable drive can be useful in some situations.
As much as 32 GB is provided for storing important data. In addition, the memory can be expanded using a micro-SD card up to 200 GB.
Additional modules
Equally important for a good smartphone is the ability to have reliable wireless communications. Samsung Galaxy S7 has one of the best Wi-Fi and 4G modules. Data transfer speed at the highest level.
The new model also has the ability to relay a Wi-Fi signal. The user will be able to use his gadget as a mobile router.
Cameras Samsung Galaxy S7
Having a good quality camera is very important for any smartphone. Samsung didn't go after more megapixels. Instead of 16 megapixels, the Galaxy S7 received only 12 megapixels, but the image quality has become much better.
The main feature of its main camera is Dual Pixel technology. The speed of working with photographs is excellent. The user can instantly focus the lens and take a photo. There are no delays or stutters when shooting.
To improve the quality of photos taken in low light, a special f/1.7 lens is used.
The camera of the Samsung Galaxy S7 smartphone has the following shooting modes:
- Auto;
- Professional;
- Selective focus;
- Panorama;
- Video collage;
- Live Stream;
- Slow motion;
- Virtual shooting;
- Hyperlapse.
A huge plus is the ability to stream to YouTube using only the built-in functions of your smartphone.
Operating system Samsung Galaxy S7
The flagship from Samsung runs on the Android operating system version 6.0. For more convenient interface management, the developers preinstalled the proprietary TouchWiz shell and a software package from Samsung, Google and Microsoft.
The Galaxy S7 has the ability to work in dual-window mode. In order to open two applications simultaneously on one screen, you need to press and hold the “Menu” button.
The new operating system is specially optimized for gaming. The user can turn off any notifications during the game, block system buttons, or prevent the application from being unloaded from the device's RAM.
Power Samsung Galaxy S7
Galaxy S7 is equipped with a high-quality non-removable 3000 mAh battery. The kit includes a charger with the ability to connect to a power source via a USB port.
The operating time of the flagship is truly impressive. With active use, its charge lasts for more than a day, with passive use - 2–3 days.
All Samsung phones that went on sale in 2016 began to last noticeably longer, thanks to larger batteries and software optimization.
The smartphone also has two built-in wireless charging standards. To fully recharge, the user will need to devote no more than 1.5 hours of his time.
Advantages and disadvantages of Samsung Galaxy S7
Samsung Galaxy S7 is a multifunctional device and has the following advantages:
- Classic design;
- Supports fast and wireless charging;
- Curved display with Super AMOLED technology;
- Long battery life;
- Memory card support;
- High performance.
- Stainless body;
- Combined slot for nano-SIM and microSD;
- Non-removable battery.
The average cost of a Samsung Galaxy S7 is 60,000 rubles.
See the video review of the Samsung Galaxy S7 smartphone below:
Part 1: general introduction and comparison of performance with iPhone 6s Plus and Moto X Force
The announcement of the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge at the Mobile World Congress 2016 expectedly became one of the main IT events in recent weeks. And although in general there is nothing revolutionary in these smartphones - it is, rather, an evolution in relation to the S6 Edge, and not a revolution, nevertheless, from first impressions and from the totality of the information voiced about the new products, I got the impression that this is really almost the best flagships of the first half of 2016. Now that we have received the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge for testing, it's time to check whether this is true or not.
We talked about our first impressions of the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge in a report from the presentation. Here we emphasize that although Samsung, like a year ago, releases two smartphones at the same time and maintains its positioning, there are still more hardware differences between them than between the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge. Firstly, the display of the two new products differs not only in the presence or absence of curvature, but also in diagonal - 5.1 inches in the case of the Galaxy S7 and 5.5 inches in the case of the S7 Edge. Secondly, the battery capacity, which was almost the same in the S6 and S6 Edge, now differs quite significantly: in the S7 this figure is 3000 mAh, and in the S7 Edge it is already 3600 mAh.
Apparently, the manufacturer decided to more thoroughly justify the price difference between the S7 and S7 Edge. On pre-order in Russia, smartphones cost 49,990 and 59,990 rubles, respectively. 10,000 rubles difference just for the spectacular curve of the screen is a bit much, but if you add to this a more capacious battery and a larger screen area, it turns out much more interesting.
We especially note that when pre-ordering, the user receives a second-generation Samsung Gear VR helmet as a gift, which individually costs almost 8,000 rubles. Nice bonus!
Let's take a look at the specifications of the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge.
Specifications Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge
- SoC Samsung Exynos 8890 Octa
- CPU Mongoose @2.6 GHz (4 cores) + Cortex-A53 @1.6 GHz (4 cores)
- GPU Mali-T880
- Operating system Android 6.0.1
- Touch display 5.5″ SuperAMOLED, curved on both sides, 2560×1440, 534 ppi
- Random access memory (RAM) 4 GB
- Permanent memory: 32 GB
- Supports microSD memory cards up to 200 GB
- SIM cards: 2 × Micro-SIM
- Communication GSM/GPRS/EDGE/3G/LTE Cat.9
- Bluetooth 4.2 LE, NFC, ANT+
- Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n/ac 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz
- GPS with A-GPS, Glonass
- Sensors: accelerometer, geomagnetic sensor, gyroscope, light sensor, proximity sensor, barometer, Hall sensor, fingerprint scanner, heart rate sensor
- Cameras: 5 MP (front) and 12 MP (rear) Dual Pixel, with LED flash, optical stabilization system and autofocus, f/1.7, 4K video shooting
- Battery: lithium polymer 3600 mAh, non-removable
- Dimensions 150.9×72.6×7.7 mm
- Weight 157 g
For clarity, we decided to make a table with the characteristics of the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and its immediate predecessor Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+, and also added to the table Moto X Force and iPhone 6S Plus - the most obvious competitors of the new product.
| Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge | Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ | Moto X Force | Apple iPhone 6s Plus | |
| Screen | 5.5″ Super AMOLED, curved on both sides, 2560×1440, 534 ppi | 5.7″ Super AMOLED, curved on both sides, 2560×1440, 515 ppi | 5.4″ AMOLED, 2560×1440, 540 ppi | 5.5″ IPS, 1920×1080, 401 ppi |
| SoC (processor) | Samsung Exynos 8890 Octa (4 Mongoose cores @2.6 GHz + 4 Cortex-A53 cores @1.6) | Samsung Exynos 7420 (4 Cortex-A57 @2.1 GHz + 4 Cortex-A53 @1.5 GHz) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 (4x Cortex-A57 @2.0 GHz + 4x Cortex-A53 @1.5 GHz) | Apple A9 (2 cores @1.8 GHz, 64-bit ARMv8-A architecture) |
| GPU | Mali-T880 | Mali-T760 | Adreno 430 | Apple A9 |
| Flash memory | 32 GB | 32 GB | 32 GB | 16/64/128 GB |
| Connectors | Micro-USB (with OTG support), 3.5mm headset jack | Micro-USB (with OTG support), 3.5mm headset jack | Lightning dock connector, 3.5mm headset jack | |
| Memory card support | microSD (up to 200 GB) | No | microSD (up to 2 TB) | No |
| RAM | 4 GB | 4 GB | 3 GB | 2 GB |
| Cameras | rear (16 MP; 4K video), front (5 MP) | rear (21 MP; 4K video), front (5 MP) | rear (12 MP; 4K video), front (5 MP) | |
| LTE support | There is | There is | There is | There is |
| Battery capacity (mAh) | 3600 | 2600 | 3760 | 2750 |
| operating system | Google Android 6.0.1 | Google Android 5.1 (updated to 6.0.1) | Google Android 6.0.1 | Apple iOS 9.0 (updated to 9.2.1) |
| Dimensions (mm)* | 151×73×7.7 | 154×76×6.9 | 150×78×9.2 | 158×78×7.3 |
| Weight (g) | 157 | 153 | 170 | 190 |
*according to official data from manufacturers
The table clearly shows what major changes have occurred in the new product compared to the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+. First of all, there is support for microSD memory cards. In addition, the smartphone is now equipped with a new SoC and a significantly more capacious battery. True, two parameters may confuse those who are choosing between the Galaxy S7 Edge and S6 Edge+. Firstly, the new product has become a little thicker, and secondly, the rear camera now has a resolution of 12 megapixels instead of the previous 16 megapixels. However, both of them are justified by some technological features, which we will discuss later, so you shouldn’t immediately write them down as disadvantages.
As for comparison with the Moto X Force, the smaller amount of RAM is noteworthy here. And, of course, the screen has no curve (although, according to Lenovo, which owns the Moto brand, it is also plastic). As for the remaining differences (SoC and camera parameters), this needs to be tested. The same is true for the iPhone 6s Plus, where direct comparison of characteristics is generally pointless due to different operating systems. But it’s worth noting that compared to the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and Moto X Force, the iPhone 6s Plus has a much less capacious battery, although the dimensions are no smaller (only thickness).
However, let's move on to direct testing and in the process we will answer a number of questions that arose when comparing the characteristics. Including the main one: which smartphone is the most productive at the moment.
Equipment
The smartphone arrived to us in a test box, different from those that will be on the counter. Alas, it was not a beautiful suitcase at all, like our colleagues from Poland, but just a white cardboard package. However, the packaging inside appears to be in line with what shoppers will get in store.
This is a charger with Quick Charge support, a Micro-USB - USB cable, a key for removing the SIM card and memory card cradle, an OTG adapter (for connecting external USB drives with a full-size plug), as well as headphones in a separate plastic box and with an additional a set of rubber ear pads.
The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ had the same headphones, and, admittedly, it was not for nothing that the manufacturer included them again. They have a tangle-free flat wire, a very comfortable ear pad shape, and most importantly, decent sound. We tested it on the FLAC version of the new Massive Attack EP "Ritual Spirit" (by the way, the smartphone plays FLAC tracks without any problems) and were pleasantly surprised by the transmission of deep bass in the songs Dead Editors and Take It There.
As for the charger, we will talk in more detail about all the issues related to the battery and recharging in the second part of the article, but for now we will report only one result: in 15 minutes, using the included charging unit, the smartphone was charged by 20%. Quite a good result!
Design
In terms of appearance, the differences between the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and the S6 Edge+ and 6S Edge are minimal - first of all, they relate to slightly changed dimensions. And yet, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge can without any doubt be called one of the most beautiful modern smartphones.
Almost the entire front panel is occupied by a screen that effectively wraps around both edges along the long sides. And this is not only admirable in itself, but also creates the illusion of a complete absence of frameworks. In fact, of course, there are frames, but they are already quite thin, and thanks to the rounding of the screen they seem quite insignificant.
Both the front and rear panels are completely covered with glass. They are quite easily soiled, especially if we are talking about the black version of the smartphone (silver and platinum versions will also be on sale), but they still look great. Very narrow zones below and above the screen are also a plus. Thanks to this, with the same screen sizes, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge is significantly more compact than the iPhone 6s Plus. True, the iPhone is just a little thinner, but this is completely unnoticeable. And thanks to the narrowing of the side edges, the Samsung smartphone seems even thinner than the Apple device.
In general, the size of the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge is optimal. The S6 Edge+ was still a bit big and didn’t feel as comfortable in the hand. But the S7 Edge is just right! Of course, because of the glass in front and behind, it is slippery, you are afraid to drop it, but it is still pleasant to hold in your hand.
All edges, like its predecessor, are made of metal, as are the buttons. They press with pleasant elasticity. The layout of buttons and connectors is similar to the previous model. On the right is the power button, on the left are separate volume buttons.
On the bottom edge there is a speaker, a Micro-USB connector with OTG support (it’s strange that Samsung is not switching to USB Type C, unlike many other manufacturers), a 3.5 mm headset jack and a built-in microphone hole. Interestingly, the location of this hole has changed, meaning that the internal layout of the components appears to have undergone significant changes. As for the speaker, its maximum volume is quite sufficient not to miss a call/alarm clock, and for watching movies or videos, but, of course, it should not be used for listening to music due to unnecessary overtones and the not very pleasant nature of the sound in in general. However, it would be strange to expect something different from a device of such a form factor.
On the top edge we see another microphone hole and a combined slot for a SIM card and a microSD memory card. Yes, as we already said, Samsung has fixed one of the main shortcomings of the Galaxy S6 Edge and S6 Edge+ by adding memory card support to the Galaxy S7 Edge. And considering that the manufacturer is especially proud of the smartphone’s camera, this is especially relevant, since 32 GB of internal memory for a camera phone that shoots video in 4K is frankly not enough.
At the top of the front panel, next to the eyes of the front camera and sensors, there is an LED event indicator. The large round dot lights up in different colors depending on the battery charging status or incoming messages. This element was there before, but I’m glad that Samsung didn’t sacrifice it.
The rear camera lens still protrudes quite a bit above the glass of the rear panel, but this can hardly be considered a serious drawback.
The Home button on the front panel also protrudes. But this is even a plus, since it is easier to find it by touch. And you will have to do this every time you turn on the smartphone, since this button contains a fingerprint sensor. It works very quickly, the recognition rate is very good, so there are no complaints here.
Despite the fact that the external design has changed minimally, the new smartphone has one very important quality: water resistance according to the IP68 standard. At the same time, there are no plugs on the ports here. That is, moisture protection is ensured thanks to the design and materials. This is, of course, a wonderful and unexpected gift, a real feat of engineers!
Overall, the design deserves the highest marks. Of course, its subjective perception depends primarily on how much you, in principle, like the screen that bends on the edge. There are people who don't like it. But even they are unlikely to argue with the fact that the design of the Galaxy S7 Edge is certainly original (except, of course, for its predecessors), and thanks to the excellent ratio of dimensions and display size, the smartphone is also very practical. It will fit into any pocket without any problems and will fit comfortably even in a small hand. As a huge plus, we note the appearance of a slot for memory cards, and among the minuses is the absence of a green option. For the Galaxy S6 Edge, it was the green (“emerald”) version that was one of the most attractive, original and stylish.
The color options for the new member of the Edge family are also quite good. But here is a strange situation: only black, gold and silver options are available for pre-order in Russia. But white - no. Although we saw it at the exhibition and, to be honest, it was the one we liked the most. It has a very interesting pearl shade. The black device that we are currently testing seems a little less advantageous and practical (due to fingerprints), although the color is still interesting, deep, and not banal.
Performance
The smartphone runs on the new Exynos 8890 Octa SoC, made using a 14 nm process technology, improved with FinFET LPP (Low-Power Plus) technology. It uses new Mongoose CPU cores (four cores with a frequency of 2.6 GHz) and the already familiar four Cortex-A53 cores with a frequency of 1.6 GHz.
The Mali-T880 acts as a graphics accelerator.
Samsung has not used this SoC before, meaning this is our first look at it. Therefore, it is necessary to compare it with the main competing solutions: Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 and Apple A9. Of course, it would be even more interesting if the comparison involved the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, but we have not yet had devices with this SoC. So we’ll be content with what we have, and at the same time we’ll try to answer the burning question that worries the Internet community so much: who is more powerful – the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge or the Apple iPhone S6 Plus?
Let's start with browser tests: SunSpider 1.0.2, Octane Benchmark, Kraken Benchmark and . We used the Chrome browser on all Android devices and Safari on iOS. If there is a dash in the table field, it means that the corresponding smartphone was not tested in this benchmark (or in this version of this benchmark).
As you can see, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge is confidently ahead of its Android competitor and its own predecessor, but the iPhone is still ahead in the overall standings.
Now let's see how the gadget performs in complex benchmarks - AnTuTu 6 and Geekbench 3.
Unfortunately, we do not have AnTuTu 6 results for the previous Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+, since we tested it in the fifth version of the benchmark, and it was radically different in the principles of scoring, so it is incorrect to compare the results. But AnTuTu finally worked fine on iOS. So we added the iPhone to the table too.
And again the picture repeats itself, although the superiority of the iPhone is already less, and in the multi-core Geekbench 3 mode, the Apple smartphone is completely inferior to the new Samsung product.
In addition to our ongoing testing methodology, we decided to compare the Galaxy S7 Edge and iPhone 6s Plus in the cross-platform Basemark OS II benchmark. The results are in front of you. The screenshot on the left is Samsung, on the right is Apple.
As we can see, Samsung lost here. Although not in all subtests (see Memory).
The last group of benchmarks is dedicated to testing GPU performance. We used 3DMark, GFXBench and Bonsai Benchmark. All of them show real 3D scenes and allow you to clearly see how the devices cope with them.
Let's start with GFXBench. Let us remind you that Offscreen tests involve displaying images in 1080p, regardless of the actual screen resolution. And Onscreen tests mean displaying a picture in the resolution that matches the device screen resolution. That is, Offscreen tests are indicative from the point of view of the abstract performance of the SoC, and Onscreen tests are indicative from the point of view of the comfort of the game on a specific device. Additionally, this year's Android devices featured a new Car Chase scene using OpenGL ES 3.1. This standard is not supported on iPhone, so this scene is not available there, nor is the Manhattan version of the scene with ES 3.1. However, there is enough data to draw conclusions.
| Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge (Samsung Exynos 8890 Octa) |
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ (Samsung Exynos 7420 Octa) |
Moto X Force (Qualcomm Snapdragon 810) |
Apple iPhone 6s Plus (Apple A9) |
|
| GFXBenchmark Car Chase ES 3.1 (Onscreen) | 7.9 fps | — | 3.2 fps | — |
| GFXBenchmark Car Chase ES 3.1 (1080p Offscreen) | 15 fps | — | 5.1 fps | — |
| GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (Onscreen) | 24 fps | — | 10 fps | — |
| GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (1080p Offscreen) | 26 fps | — | 18 fps | — |
| GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.0 (Onscreen) | 25 fps | — | — | 39 fps |
| GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.0 (1080p Offscreen) | 38 fps | — | — | 40 fps |
| GFXBenchmark T-Rex (Onscreen) | 52 fps | 37 fps | 40 fps | 59 fps |
| GFXBenchmark T-Rex (1080p Offscreen) | 84 fps | 57 fps | 53 fps | 80 fps |
As we can see, the Galaxy S7 Edge and iPhone 6s Plus performed approximately equally. The difference in Onscreen mode is naturally explained by the higher screen resolution of the Galaxy S7 Edge. As for comparison with other Android smartphones, the picture here is clear and requires no comment.
The next tests are 3DMark and Bonsai Benchmark. In 3DMark, the Sling Shot scene ran in OpenGL ES 3.1 on Android devices, and in OpenGL 3.0 on iPhones.
One can immediately say about Bonsai Benchmark that it is no longer indicative for such productive SoCs - in particular, this is evidenced by the results of two Samsung smartphones. But with 3DMark it’s more interesting. And here the iPhone is still in the lead.
In general, the benchmarks allow us to draw the following conclusions. Undoubtedly, this is a powerful device that has no equal among Android smartphones. At least until the appearance of devices powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820. However, Samsung’s new product failed to surpass the iPhone 6s Plus - Apple’s flagship is the leader in most tests. Although the gap is minimal and is rather of theoretical interest. The practical result (performance in games) will depend primarily on how well the game is optimized for a specific SoC.
In the second part of the article you will find detailed testing of the screen, a story about battery life, a description of the software, as well as a test drive of the camera in field conditions - on the Kola Peninsula, including during underwater shooting! Do not miss!
At the moment, the Galaxy S line is represented by two current smartphone models. Slim and not too big, the S7 is positioned as a classic smartphone for everyone. The 5.1-inch screen diagonal does not cause problems even when held with tiny female hands, and the absence of any specific bells and whistles in the design does not scare away the audience accustomed to the standard form factor.
The S7 edge phablet, on the contrary, acts as a sophisticated older brother for the sophisticated. Not only is it 0.4 inches larger, but it also offers a special body design with a screen that is curved on the sides.
The Galaxy S7 doesn't really seem big, especially compared to other modern smartphones. Look, it is noticeably more compact than even the Nexus 5X, which is not outstanding in size, and definitely does not deserve to be called a shovel.
We are sure that if you gather a hundred people and ask them to choose between S7 and S7 edge, the classic will win unconditionally. Few people will decide to buy a larger, more expensive and problematic device in terms of convenience.
Performance and quality
It's very easy to fall in love with the Galaxy S7. Seriously. Just take it in your hand and you will immediately understand everything. Handle the Galaxy S7 and your criteria for build quality will change dramatically. The smartphone does not look like something consisting of hundreds of parts, and is perceived exclusively as a whole, monolithic, skillfully polished piece of glass without a hint of sharp corners or lines, with a neatly fused layer of metal in the middle. There’s no need to even talk about backlashes and squeaks. Everything fits perfectly. It is so neat and smooth that you want to lick it.
Galaxy S7 is made in accordance with the IP68 standard, that is, it is not at all afraid of dust and is friendly with water. Please note that such high moisture resistance does not require any removable plugs or other nonsense. The smartphone can withstand a 30-minute immersion in water up to a depth of 1.5 meters with an open USB port and headphone jack. We did not test the water resistance in practice, since there are already enough videos on YouTube confirming the level of water protection claimed by Samsung.
Samsung's decision to move away from plastic can be called the best thing that ever happened to the flagship Galaxy line. Plastic, even high-quality one, is always associated with something cheap, but metal and glass look and feel luxurious. For a flagship, this is it. In the case of the Galaxy S7, a fashionable method of glass processing, which received the marketing name “2.5D glass,” is added to the premium set of materials.
Take a look at the front and back of the Galaxy S7. The glass on them is rounded towards the edges. The screen under the glass is absolutely flat. The point of this treatment is to increase the streamlining of the body at the junction with the side panels. The transition becomes smooth, sharp angles dissolve, blur and are replaced by what is called conjugation in drawing.
In addition to smoothness, 2.5D glass adds a very beautiful optical effect, which is further enhanced by the dark matte surface around the screen and on the back of the smartphone.
Take another look at the photos of the device. Do you notice some color unevenness, as if in some places the smartphone is lighter, with a grayish tint? This is how the light hitting the surface through the uneven glass is refracted, and when you turn the device, the glare jumps around the body like sunbeams.
Unfortunately, 2.5D glass also has its downsides. In case of excessive lighting and especially under the sun, you can always position the flat screen so that the light is not reflected into the eyes and the contents of the screen are visible. In this case, glare is almost impossible to avoid. The rounded edges will still reflect, which is noticeable even in smartphone photographs under artificial lighting, and the blinding summer sun will certainly worsen the situation.
The second objective disadvantage of glass is its soilability. The case quickly becomes covered with fingerprints, and although they can be removed quickly and easily, you will have to get used to the permanent staining of the device.
Design and equipment
It seems that Samsung has finally found the ideal arrangement of control buttons and other external elements of the smartphone. Sound, power, speaker, headphone and USB jacks are in the same place as the predecessor.
Only the SIM card slot has moved to the top side panel, and there is a reason for that.
Yes, the Galaxy has a microSD slot again, which is great. No more guessing and suffering regarding the optimal amount of internal storage.
Do you need another 32 GB to add to the built-in 32 GB of memory? We place the card and rejoice. Need 128 GB? No problem. Drives with capacities up to 200 GB are supported. The memory card is incomparably cheaper than older smartphone models with increased internal storage.
If additional space is not required, a second SIM card can take the place of the microSD card. Simultaneous operation of the second SIM and memory card is not provided.
The fingerprint sensor located in the Home button has become noticeably faster and more accurate in fingerprint recognition, and the button itself is now flush with the body. There will be no more false alarms when a smartphone is accidentally pinched in a pocket.
The Galaxy S7 comes with a power adapter, a USB cable, standard earbuds with replaceable earplugs, as well as a microUSB adapter designed for quickly and completely transferring data from an old smartphone via the built-in Smart Switch utility.
Screen
Displays have always been Samsung's strong point, and the Galaxy S7 continues to hold its own. The smartphone is equipped with a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED Quad HD display (resolution 2560 × 1440) with a density of 577 pixels per inch. The screen is protected by Gorilla Glass 4 with anti-reflective coating.
The most interesting innovation is the Always On mode, in which the display displays user-selectable information in a locked state without any noticeable impact on battery power. This is possible thanks to the autonomous power supply of each pixel of the AMOLED display. Energy is spent only on illuminating the working pixels. The rest of the screen area is black, in this place the pixels are turned off and do not consume battery power. If desired, Always On can be disabled in the settings.
Other indicators of the Galaxy S7 screen are not much different from its predecessor. It is just as bright and sometimes overly rich, adapts a little better to excess or lack of light, but in general it is still the same cool display inherent to Samsung, which is criticized only for excessive color saturation.
Cameras
If before the Galaxy S7 it might seem to you that your smartphone takes photos quickly and coolly, then after the Galaxy S7 any other camera suddenly becomes slow and “not very good at all.”
Samsung chose the right path, and instead of a stupid marketing race for megapixels, the company worked closely on the quality, functionality and, what is also important, the speed of operation and focusing (Dual Pixel technology - two photodiodes for each pixel of the matrix) of the camera module. The camera module itself has become more compact and practically does not protrude from the body.
Focusing and photographing happen literally instantly, and after a tiny fraction of a second the smartphone is ready to take the next photo. No delays, no freezes or slowdowns during shooting. You can use manual multi-shooting mode and take clear frames without stopping at all.
To improve the quality of low-light images, the Galaxy S7 uses a combination of a fast f/1.7 lens and an individual pixel size increased to 1.4 microns.
Some will think that 12 megapixels is somehow not enough for a 2016 flagship. In fact, this resolution of the main camera is enough for any task. Still, the vast majority of photos are mercilessly shrunk and end up on social networks, and therefore, for the end user, quality and easily applicable additional features are more valuable than the original size of the image. The Galaxy S7 camera offers as many as 10 shooting modes.
By default, the standard automatic mode is launched, when the smartphone itself adjusts everything, and the user only selects a filter (if, of course, he wants) and presses a button.
In contrast to the automatic mode, there is a professional mode with the ability to fine-tune each shooting parameter manually.
Selective Focus lets you take an interactive photo with variable focus.
Do you need to make the main object clear? Select “Near Focus” from below.
Would you like to see the background? Tap “Far Focus”.
Among other shooting modes, “Live Broadcast” also deserves a separate explanation. It allows you to connect your YouTube account and stream what is happening on the screen simultaneously with the image from the front camera. Fashionable mobile YouTuber gamers will definitely appreciate this feature.
The last mode worthy of mention is “Virtual Shooting”. We catch the object of interest to us in the center of the lens, start shooting and walk around the object in a circle. The resulting animation is tied to the smartphone’s gyroscope and allows you to re-examine the captured object from any angle.
Other photo modes, such as fast and slow motion, panorama, video collage, and Food, are quite popular and self-explanatory.
The Galaxy S7 can shoot Full HD video at 60 frames per second and 4K video at 30 frames per second. Stabilization is supported in all modes.
The front camera does not have exciting characteristics.
Standard 5 megapixels combined with adjustable face lighting and correction tools do their job and produce excellent selfies.
Features and performance
Versions of the Galaxy S7 for Russia and Europe are equipped with an 8-core Exynos 8890 processor made using a 14-nm process technology (4 proprietary Samsung Mongoose cores 2.3 GHz and 4 Cortex-A53 1.6 GHz cores) and Mali-T880 MP12 graphics.
The top-end processor, combined with 4 GB of high-speed LPDDR4 memory, effortlessly handles the heaviest 3D applications. The AnTuTu Benchmark 6.0.1 test showed the following results:
In addition to current types of communication, Samsung has equipped the Galaxy S7 with a Wi-Fi repeater function. In this mode, the smartphone can connect to any available Wi-Fi point and distribute the Internet through itself.
System
Out of the box, the Galaxy S7 runs on Android, with the proprietary TouchWiz shell installed on top.
There is a pre-installed basic set of applications from Samsung, a full set of Google applications and services, social networks and a set of software from Microsoft.
Uninstallable applications, of course, are detrimental to the device from an optimization standpoint, but if you don’t want to spend a certain amount of time searching and downloading applications from Google Play or the Samsung app store, then a large set of pre-installed software is even useful.
The transition to two-window operating mode occurs by long-pressing the “Menu” button.
In addition to some changes in the interface associated with the transition to , special attention is drawn to the new game center, which accumulates all the user’s games in one interface and optimizes the gameplay. You can disable any notifications while a gaming application is running, block system buttons, prevent the gaming application from being unloaded from RAM when minimized, and forcefully reduce the resolution and number of frames in the game.
Working hours
Galaxy S7 is equipped with a 3,000 mAh non-removable battery with fast charging function. Obviously, depending on the intensity of use and other factors, the battery life can vary significantly, and in our scenario the results turned out to be quite acceptable.
Before testing, we did a full reset to factory settings, cleared the memory, and left the display brightness automatically adjusted. The smartphone offered initial setup, updated applications and downloaded the Android 6.0.1 update.
In total, during the first intensive hour of work, which included performance analysis via AnTuTu, the battery lost 15% of its charge. Then standard operations were carried out: photographing, video shooting, checking all types of communications, the operation of applications and branded Samsung chips. Thus, about another 20% of the battery charge was consumed. According to the built-in battery monitoring tool, in this mode the smartphone would last 8 hours, which is very good. In passive mode with Wi-Fi running and the Always On screen, the smartphone lost about 13% of its charge per day.
Power consumption is partially optimized due to the built-in utility, but in total, after almost a day and a half of operation, the battery retained 41% charge.
Conclusion
The life hacker thanks Samsung for providing the device for testing. We really enjoyed. In terms of performance and technical characteristics, there is no fault with the Galaxy S7. The build quality and materials are super. The design is nice. The screen, as always, is excellent, and even shows the necessary things without draining the battery. The camera is fire. The battery is durable. The power is excessive, the productivity is off the charts. The system is up to date, there are pre-installed applications. It would take a long time to list the advantages; the flagship has no weak points. But as soon as we touch upon the issue of price, problems begin. Paying 50 thousand rubles for a smartphone is difficult, very difficult. What do you think?
Specifications
- Android 6.0.1, TouchWiz 2016
- Display 5.1 inches, QHD resolution, 576 ppi, SuperAMOLED, automatic backlight adjustment, Always On function, different operating modes, Corning Gorilla Glass 4
- 4 GB RAM, 32/64 GB internal memory, memory card up to 200 GB
- nanoSIM (there will be options for 2 SIM cards)
- Exynos 8890 chipset, 8 cores up to 1.8 GHz per core, MALI T880 MP12 graphics coprocessor (in some countries there is an option for Qualcomm Snapdragon 820)
- LTE cat12/13 support with software update, operator support also required
- Front camera 5 megapixels, flash (screen), BRITECELL main camera, 12 megapixels, time-lapse shooting, slow-motion, video effects, 4K video
- Wi-Fi: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz), HT80 MIMO(2x2) 620Mbps, Dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, Mobile hotspot, Bluetooth®: v4.2, A2DP, LE, apt-X, ANT+, USB 2.0, NFC
- Wireless charging built into case (WPC1.1(4.6W Output) & PMA 1.0(4.2W)
- Li-Ion 3000 mAh battery, extreme power saving mode, fast charging in one hour up to 70 percent
- Water protection, IP68 standard
- Dimensions – 142.4x69.6x7.9 mm, weight – 152 grams
Contents of delivery
- Telephone
- Charger (Fast Adaptive Charge) with USB cable
- USB adapter, microUSB-USB
- Instructions
- Wired stereo headset
- SIM tray clip
Positioning
In 2015, there were changes within Samsung that affected the positioning of devices, their release schedule and what the company was doing. In particular, for flagships they experimented when they abandoned memory cards (Apple doesn’t have one, and no one is complaining!), made the cases monolithic, and this scared off many consumers. The fact that two models appeared on the market at once - S6 and S6 EDGE, in the same body size, but one with a side edge and the other without, confused the situation even more.
The very first sales showed that the fashionable EDGE is in overwhelming demand, while the simple S6 is not so popular. The difference in demand did not affect the total sales volume, but rather their distribution in the S6/S6 EDGE pair. The shortage at EDGE was noticeable during the first three months; the company did not have time to produce matrices for them and was forced to launch additional production.
But then what was supposed to happen happened, the S6 with a flat screen took its toll, this device, due to its price, pulled sales to itself. For example, in Russia the cost of the S6 is about 35 thousand rubles in the basic version, while the similar EDGE costs 10-12 thousand more. On the Russian market, it was the S6 that became the most popular flagship on Android, one of the best-selling models from Samsung. I am sure that the same thing will happen with time with the S7; this device has a long life cycle and, over time and with price adjustments, will gain more and more fans.
What is the beauty of this model? For me, the first priority in a phone is always the screen; you get used to the large diagonal quickly, and it’s difficult to give it up. Last year I had a pair of two phones - S6 EDGE and Note, then gradually switched to Note 5 and EDGE Plus. It so happened that my choice settled on two flagships with a large screen diagonal. In addition to the screen, the main reason was the operating time; the “small” EDGE did not allow me to comfortably survive until the evening, despite the fact that it was the second device paired with the large Note. It is clear that my phone usage scenario is different from the vast majority of people, I use smartphones to the fullest, I have different devices connected to them, a wireless headset, a hands-free kit and various sensors.
But many people use only one device and at the same time they do not want it to be large, they strive for compactness. In my opinion, the golden mean of the modern market is 5 inches; this is the overwhelming majority of smartphones sold; about half of all devices in the world come in this diagonal. And this is precisely the Galaxy S7, which offers that golden mean.
Who is this phone interesting for? First of all, these are those who are switching from the iPhone and want to maintain a compact body, and at the same time get longer operating time and a better screen. Switching from the previous generation of sixes from Samsung does not make much sense, unless you have extra money and are itching that a model has appeared that is better in many respects. Among the flagships, the S7 looks like a balanced solution; on the one hand, this is a typical price for the basic version (the most affordable flagship of 2016), on the other hand, it has maximum technology and noticeably improved ergonomics of the solution. Despite my love for phablets, I am now again considering the S7 as a second phone in pair with the S7 EDGE/S6 EDGE Plus, since it is more compact and at the same time is not inferior to its older brothers in anything except the screen diagonal.
Design, body materials
Time passes, and yesterday's ideas about beauty evaporate like fog. Remember, not long ago we considered thin devices with a thickness of one and a half centimeters, and this was only ten years ago. Exactly the same situation is with what is considered a compact phone today, in my opinion, these are models with a diagonal of 4.5-4.7 inches, while the most popular are devices with a 5-inch screen. And gradually people are switching to such phones, considering their size convenient; today this is the majority of smartphones on the market. The same S7 fits well into the cohort of such devices, has a good size for them - 142.4x69.6x7.9 mm, weight - 152 grams.
The ergonomics of the device is something that we worked on day and night; impressions of the model in comparison with the S6 vary greatly. This device fits into your hand like a glove. Compared to the S7 EDGE, due to the lack of a chamfered front edge as it does, you feel the S7 is much more comfortable. No slipping in the hand, fits as if it was always there. Of course, these impressions are individual, some may not like the device, it all depends on your habits and the size of your hands. But it suited me perfectly. And the most important thing is that there are no difficulties in dialing a number with one hand on the go; this is quite possible without acrobatic performances.
Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge
Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S6 Edge
For Samsung in 2015, the redesign of the flagships was successful; now they are all built on a metal frame, have a back surface made of Corning Gorilla Glass 4. In 2016, nothing changes, except that the glass on the front and back panels becomes 2.5D ( this is fashion and nothing more, now all companies make such glass with a curve). Samsung, in order to position itself differently from its competitors, calls 3D glass, they have reasons for this; no one uses such bends for Gorilla Glass 4 in their products.
As you can see, these smartphones are completely identical in appearance to the 2015 flagships; it will be difficult to see the differences. Moreover, the same A-series of 2016 looks similar to these devices, only the colors will differ, due to which they will try to highlight the older models. But it is difficult in real life to distinguish the richness of the color of the case, to notice what kind of device a person uses. A successful design, which is reproduced in a dozen models, quickly becomes boring. And, perhaps, it is precisely this moment that will stop many; people will think that it will be difficult to stand out with the help of such a device. As I see the situation, Samsung switched to a two-year design cycle, like Apple, but decided to play counterbalance, that is, change the appearance of the handsets not in the same year as Apple. This year, the iPhone 7 will get a different appearance, but the Galaxy S7 will resemble its predecessor.
From the point of view of color solutions, the black device (Black Onyx) looks more interesting; the gold color is somewhat boring in the previous model. And most people order a black or silver phone, which is also good.
In total, these are the colors available for now, but they will not appear in all markets at the same time.
Now a few words about dreams about a collapsible body. This model does not and will not have it; the design itself does not involve replacing the battery yourself. But this can be done at any service center. The second point is protection from water. Just like in the Galaxy S5, it is returning to Samsung devices, and to all flagships. The protection standard is IP68, phones can be drowned, and nothing will happen to them. There is impregnation of the components on the board with a special solution that repels water (they like to use it in Motorola phones), but the design itself does not allow water to get inside; there are special membranes on the speakers and microphones.
And this is how they protected the microUSB connector so that water does not get inside, and if this does happen due to an impact, then there is a special controller that prevents short circuits.
All metal surfaces have undergone additional anti-corrosion treatment. In the picture you can see painted parts that were additionally protected from water.
We conducted an IP68 test and the phone passed it with ease. There are no problems with it, watch the video. I would like to note right away that in order for the speakers to not sound dull after water, the device must be dry; this is a simple logic that for some reason is not clear to some people.
Pay attention to how the tray for the SIM card and memory card is designed; it has a rubberized insert that is lower than the top edge. As a result, dust from pockets quickly accumulates here, but it does not penetrate inside the phone. The peculiarity of its protection affects it. Some people may not like this from an aesthetic point of view, but there is no problem with this, since dust does not penetrate inside the case and cannot get there.
The case has increased slightly in size, this is a consequence of both the larger battery in the S7 and a different frame design, it was made stronger so that the device could withstand serious falls (6013 aluminum alloy). I have absolutely no complaints about the latest generations of Galaxy regarding resistance to falls. They immediately completely recalculated the location of the components and parts of the phone to ensure even greater survivability and safety of the glass that covers the screen and back surface. There are no miracles in the world, and any device can be broken, but users of the Galaxy/Note line know that they have very reliable devices that are difficult to break.
One of the disadvantages of the black version is the speaker grille, which is also painted black. The paint wears off in a few weeks in the pocket, and white metal appears. In the gold color of the case it is simply not noticeable, it creates the feeling that everything is correct, but here it is clearly visible. In my opinion, this is an obvious drawback, but it cannot be called critical.
Overall, the S7 turned out to be very good in terms of materials and feel. Fits perfectly in the hand, good in pockets.
To prevent the device from heating up, a special cooling system was created inside. Look at her description.
Memory type, RAM, memory cards
When Samsung decided to stop producing its flagships with memory cards, the company reasoned that memory capacity of 32, 64 and 128 GB would, in theory, be enough for anyone. In practice, the company got confused in logistics, and the 32 GB devices appeared first, then the 64 GB ones, but the 128 GB models turned out to be difficult to find, and few of them were produced. This is a fundamental difference from Apple, where you can buy a device with any amount of memory and they are always in stock. Therefore, the experiment inside Samsung was considered unsuccessful, and the groan of consumers turned out to be so loud that all Samsung top managers felt it.
Apparently, in order to please people, you must first take something away from them. This happened with memory cards; they were removed in 2015 and they realized what a mistake it was in 2016. Now memory cards have been returned to all flagships, you can use them of almost any size. The 200 GB card is recognized and works. Later, support for 2 TB memory cards may appear, there is no reason not to do this, there are no technical restrictions.
The main models will be those that offer 32 GB of internal memory, while 64 GB devices will become less common. I think there is nothing wrong with this, and users will choose exactly such solutions.
Since Samsung smartphones use fast UFS 2.0 memory, the company had to abandon the proprietary Android 6 feature of combining memory cards and internal memory into a single array. This is necessary for those who do not intend to use their memory card anywhere else, but only in one phone. The risks of this are quite high, if the memory card fails, you will lose most of your data, if not all of it, except for those stored in the cloud.
As a result, Samsung decided to make an intermediate solution. You get 24 GB of space out of 32 GB, while 8 GB contains system and space for working with external memory, for example, it is used as a buffer for video recording, cache and other system functions. But, as before, you can transfer most of the applications to a memory card without storing them in the internal memory of your smartphone. As a result, there are no de facto restrictions; you can use your smartphone as you please.
The type of RAM has not changed; these are chips built on 20 nm technology; we first saw them a year ago. The peak data transfer speed is 3.2 Gb/s, which can be considered the maximum speed in mobile devices in the next year, or even a year and a half. The amount of RAM has increased to 4 GB.
The memory manager, which appeared in the previous generation and caused complaints from many users because it unloaded applications from memory, remains. But they added an operating mode in which the latest applications are kept in RAM and unloaded only when necessary. That is, it turned out to be a kind of mixed mode: until the memory is needed, applications hang in it, and as soon as it is needed, they go into the buffer.
But due to the speed of the processor, the time it takes to load applications from the cache has been reduced by at least half; it seems that they are hanging in memory. Visually, and in feel, this is a big increase in speed in this particular aspect.
Chipset and performance
In 2015, Samsung stopped using Qualcomm in its flagships; the processors got very hot and had many flaws. In particular, it was the Snapdragon 810, which Qualcomm was able to finalize only a year after the first samples. This processor and Samsung's rejection of it brought down Qualcomm's shares and even caused a wave of layoffs and a reorganization of the chipset manufacturer.
Until 2015, the prevailing stereotype said that Exynos versions of flagships were noticeably worse than their Qualcomm counterparts. Often this was not the case; they were equivalent from the point of view of the average consumer. Qualcomm has traditionally been stronger than Samsung's own solutions in LTE modems. In 2016, the difference is leveled out even more, since modems on Exynos also received an update and began to work better. Are they inferior to Qualcomm? I think yes. Will you notice this difference in real life? I think no.
The vast majority of countries will receive flagships from Samsung with the Exynos version, and not with the Qualcomm 820. Operators who want to get the Qualcomm version for some reason do so consciously and for their own reasons. Among the disadvantages of the Qualcomm version, I note that the operating time in various modes is approximately 10 percent shorter, which, with the same performance, looks like a huge difference. Also, the lesser integration of the Qualcomm chipset with the Samsung camera may affect the autofocus speed (but you most likely won’t notice it). The preferred version of the flagships will be the one that uses the Exynos 8890 inside.
Depending on the operator and/or chipset used, the letters in the model markings will differ; the standard name is SM-G930. Let's dwell a little on this processor. So, it is made on a 14 nm FinFET process, it has eight cores, and also has a new MALI T880 MP12 graphics coprocessor. In the graphics department, the processor is claimed to be 80 percent faster than the MALI-T760, while power efficiency is 40 percent higher at maximum load.
Among the interesting features of the chipset, I note support for LTE cat.12/13, which ensures data downloads at speeds of up to 600 Mbit/s (a 1 GB movie can be downloaded in one minute if your operator supports these categories). Check out the infographic on this processor.
In synthetic benchmarks, the Exynos version shows better performance.
The S7 wins in the tests, it is the fastest device at the moment (my phones are Exynos). Look at the test results.
I would like to separately note that the new processor is very fast. In every sense, this is one of the best processors on the market, and at the same time it has good energy efficiency, reduced power consumption, which, together with other technical solutions, makes these models very interesting.
The phone also has an additional Exynos M1 processor, which is responsible for calculating movements. Dedicating a separate, dedicated processor for this is justified. Currently, S Health has an erroneous count of steps when moving in a car; shaking is perceived as walking. This defect will be corrected in the coming months.
Display
The phone has a SuperAMOLED screen, 5.1 inches, QHD resolution. There is simply nothing better on the market, and the fact that all companies are trying to switch to AMOLED and are ready to buy screens from Samsung that are several generations old only shows how good this technology is.
DisplayMate traditionally conducted a study of screens in S7/S7 EDGE, and the result is quite interesting, the previous leader in the person of S6 EDGE Plus lost the crown, displays from the latest generation were named the best screens in mobile devices, nothing better simply exists in the world. , it is quite detailed and thorough.
Let's look at several technologies, each of which is not obvious, but improves the use of these devices in everyday life. So, let's start with how screens behave in bright sunlight. The S7 has no problems with this, no glare, no reflections, the brightness in automatic mode can be set to such a level that you will see bright and colorful colors, all the contents of the screen will be readable. But it depends on your preferences, however, more on that later.
Now let's imagine the unimaginable. Many people use sunglasses in the summer, many of them have polarized lenses. The problem with most screens in portable electronics is that they are difficult to see, especially in normal, portrait orientation. The screen of the same iPhone 6/6s becomes darker than it actually is. Flip the screen to landscape orientation and it will be brighter. Miracle? Just the arrangement of the elements.
The screen for the Galaxy S7 took care of this “little detail” and placed the polarizing filter at an angle of 45 degrees, so that no matter how you look at the screen with glasses, the picture remains bright. This is the first device on the market in which even such little things for the screen were thought through.
Another thing that has changed for screens and appears for the first time in the S7/S7 EDGE is personal automatic brightness adjustment. What does it mean? How can tuning be both personal and automatic? The answer lies in the fact that we are all different and perceive the brightness of screens, their colors and other parameters differently. Samsung has implemented an intelligent system that evaluates the level of ambient light and what lighting options we choose, what we consider a comfortable level for ourselves. And this data is used to subsequently adjust the backlight in a way that is convenient for you. It is enough to use both manual and automatic backlight adjustment for about one week for the phone to understand what you like and work in automatic mode. I'm really excited about this feature because it predicts what I want to see, what the screen brightness should be under different conditions.
The screen also has an Always On mode, when the time is constantly shown, as an option, a picture or a calendar, and you can select themes in which these images will be different.
This is simply a wonderful feature, since, unlike competitors, the picture is displayed in color, it is always visible, whether at night or during the day, and is quite bright. For those who are afraid that this will affect the operating time of the device, on the S7 EDGE, 12 hours of display operation in this mode consumes from 1 to 2% of the battery (depending on external lighting conditions, the picture changes in brightness automatically). This is nothing, but you always have a watch in front of your eyes, and this sharply distinguishes this phone from all others.
Cameras – front and main
The front camera has a resolution of 5 megapixels, and light sensitivity has been slightly increased. The screen itself can act as a flash. It is possible to improve complexion, remove artifacts on the skin, and at the same time correct facial geometry. Girls will definitely like these facial enhancements.
But there is no intrigue here, everything is clear and familiar. The intrigue is what happened to the main camera, because in the S6 its resolution was 16 megapixels, and in the S7/S7 EDGE the camera suddenly became 12 megapixels.
The Galaxy S7/S7 EDGE uses the Sony IMX260 camera module (a year earlier IMX240), which was created specifically for Samsung. Such products usually do not receive descriptions on the Sony website; moreover, they cannot be purchased from other manufacturers.
I was unable to find a sane description of the IMX260, and this is not so important, since the main innovations were explained during the presentation of the Galaxy S7. So, the company increased the lens aperture f/1.7 (a year earlier f/1.9), while also increasing the pixel size to 1.4 microns, which makes it possible to obtain more information on the matrix. In Britecell, the pixel size is one micron, and it immediately turns out that this technology is not used in the IMX260, judging by the information that we had before. But everything is not so simple, let's try to figure it out.
Let me start with the fact that the S7 is the first device on the market that has focusing over the entire area of the matrix, that is, one hundred percent of the pixels are involved in phase detection autofocus.
But, perhaps, the most important thing is the increased clarity and brightness of the picture (although, to be honest, I don’t know which is better, current flagships shoot very well). Here the possibilities of shooting in the evening and in the dark have increased. New scenes and stories, camera settings have appeared. Samsung was able to improve the camera, although it seemed impossible to do so.
Sample photos
Comparison with S6 Edge+
| S7 Edge | S6 Edge+ |
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For example, the “Food” mode has appeared, this is a kind of filter in which the background is blurred; note that the picture on the left is without a filter, on the right – with it.
| Ordinary | Food mode |
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For video recording, a slow-motion mode has appeared, as well as time-lapse, examples of which you can see in the video below.
And here is an example of a regular video on this camera.
From year to year I say that Samsung flagships shoot better and better, they are of very high quality. And I’m tired of constantly answering the question on social networks about what this photo was taken with. In the S7/S7 EDGE the camera has become even better, making these devices the undoubted leaders. Now the time when you can be guaranteed to get a high-quality photo has expanded; this is not only during the day, but also at dusk and evening. In short, the camera is, as before, one of the strengths of these devices.
extracurricular reading
Battery
The slightly increased size is also due to the battery capacity – 3000 mAh. The operating time of a device is always a combination of factors, in particular, software stability and optimization, quality of components, and screen power consumption. It is difficult and sometimes impossible to consider operating time in isolation from these parameters.
A typical scenario for using a modern smartphone involves running various programs in the background, not only browsing pages, but connecting a wireless headset, and so on. Everyone has their own usage scenario, for example, I use my phones to the fullest - I take photographs, listen to podcasts on a wireless headset, watch social networks, movies, web pages, receive mail from different mailboxes every fifteen minutes. My EDGE Plus lives with three to three and a half hours of screen operation from morning to late evening with the backlight at about 70 percent. And this is a good indicator. For many, the operating time of this device is on average two days. Some manage to make it work for up to three days, and say that this is enough for them to actively use. It should be noted here that the word “active” is different for everyone, everyone puts their own worldview into it.
For S7 I get a full day, from morning to evening, there are no restrictions here. The operating time of the screen with automatic backlighting is from 3.5 to 4.5 hours (brightness is 50-60%, which is very noticeable; among competitors this is considered full brightness). It is the operating time that becomes one of the advantages compared to S6/S6 EDGE.
Video playback time at maximum brightness is from 13 to 14 hours on average (the radio module is not disabled).
The phone has two built-in wireless charging standards, you can use either one. There is support for fast wireless charging. There is also fast wired charging - in 90 minutes you will charge the device to 100 percent. To get half a charge, less than half an hour is enough. Many flagships from other companies can only dream of such fast charging technology, which saves you even if you forgot to charge the device the night before, in the morning it will only take a few minutes.
The most important improvement in the current flagships, and indeed all 2016 models from Samsung, is the increased operating time. A huge amount of work has been done here, and this should be noted. On average, they will work 1.5-2 times longer than previous devices in the same segment. The reason is an increase in battery capacity, but also optimization of software and hardware.
A few words about the microUSB connector, which the progressive part of humanity has already decided to scrap and is waiting for USB Type C. Personally, I am tired of carrying the second cable, I constantly forget it, and therefore some phones are charged only at home, where such cables are available. The value of Type C is still greatly overestimated; such a connector is needed by a small audience that considers itself technology enthusiasts. Therefore, it was not used in mass products. A gradual transition to it will begin in the fall of 2016, and even then, this is an issue that has not been fully resolved. Now Samsung has decided that the compatibility of all accessories is much more important than supporting a fashion trend.
Speaking of AMOLED, Exynos and operating time. Meizu Pro 5 used this combination of components from Samsung to achieve maximum operating time in its flagship. Other companies are starting to adopt Samsung's experience, this is becoming a trend.
USB, Bluetooth, communication capabilities
Bluetooth version 4.2, it was created for the Internet of Things and works great with various sensors. Otherwise, there are no significant changes; new profiles have appeared and power consumption has improved. Let me remind you that there are some interesting things in the new standard.
Firstly, this is an extended range, which can reach several tens of meters, depending on the device settings and how the manufacturer configured this option. Secondly, the IP protocol is used for addressing, that is, devices now have their own unique addresses and communication with many such devices is supported.
From technical points, the interaction between Bluetooth and LTE has been improved; now the operation of these technologies is synchronized within one device, and mutual interference is not created (LTE is not relevant for our frequencies). Plus, Bluetooth devices can now access the cloud and transmit their results directly, bypassing the companion device, as was previously necessary.
USB connection. USB 2.0 is used here, that is, the data transfer speed is about 20 Mb/s. These are not theoretical, but real results on devices. They may vary depending on the operating system and the computer you connect your phone to. Both up and down.
WiFi. The 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac standard is supported, the operation wizard is similar to that for Bluetooth. You can remember selected networks and automatically connect to them. It is possible to set up a connection to the router in one touch; to do this, you need to press a key on the router, and also activate a similar button in the device menu (WPA SecureEasySetup). Among the additional options, it is worth noting the setup wizard; it appears when the signal is weak or disappearing. You can also set up Wi-Fi on a schedule.
802.11n supports HT40 mode, allowing you to double your Wi-Fi throughput (requires support from another device).
Wi-Fi Direct. A protocol that is intended to replace Bluetooth or begin to compete with its third version (which also uses Wi-Fi version n to transfer large files). In the Wi-Fi settings menu, select the Wi-Fi Direct section, the phone begins to search for devices around. We select the desired device, activate the connection on it, and voila. Now in the file manager you can view files on another device, as well as transfer them. Another option is to simply find devices connected to your router and transfer the necessary files to them; this can be done from the gallery or other sections of the phone. The main thing is that the device supports Wi-Fi Direct.
Wi-Fi repeater.
It's impossible to write a review when you only use the phone for a few minutes at the company's stand and this device is not your main one. Then materials appear that lack many “tricks” that the manufacturer himself did not talk about, just as others did not discover them. I am constantly working with the Galaxy S7; I have already discovered many “little things” that distinguish Samsung flagships from other Android smartphones and will later become part of Android itself. I want to tell you about one of these features.
Usually, when you turn on an access point on your phone, it immediately turns off Wi-Fi; you cannot use both at the same time.
On the Galaxy S7/S7 EDGE, I suddenly discovered that when I turn on Wi-Fi, it connects to the wireless network, but does not disable your access point. There are two icons in the status line.
Further - more and even more interesting. All phones connected to the Galaxy S7 start using its Wi-Fi connection rather than using mobile data from it. Until now, the Wi-Fi router scenario in mobile phones has never been used so widely.
Who might need it and why? For example, when traveling, I often encounter restrictions on the number of connected devices in hotels. With the Galaxy S7 features, these restrictions on the number of devices are a thing of the past; now I'm writing text, and a dozen of my phones are hanging on the same connection through the Galaxy S7 EDGE. And most importantly, I don’t have to waste time at all and enter my last name, room number and postal address on each one. It's the same story in restaurants, cafes and other places where I can share my connection without having to enter Wi-Fi settings on each device. Cool? Undoubtedly.
Another question is that this function is not so necessary for the vast majority of people. At home, this is an opportunity to distribute your Internet to those corners of the apartment where your router does not reach. At the same time, check whether it’s worth buying a regular Wi-Fi repeater and whether it will work.
As always, I think it's better to have extra features that you don't need very often, but will be grateful for when you need them, rather than not have those features. Do you need a Wi-Fi repeater function?
NFC. The device has NFC technology, it can be used with various additional applications.
S Beam. A technology that allows you to transfer a file of several gigabytes in size to another phone in a few minutes. In fact, we see in S Beam a combination of two technologies - NFC and Wi-Fi Direct. The first technology is used to bring up and authorize phones, but the second is used to transfer the files themselves. The creatively redesigned way to use Wi-Fi Direct is much simpler than using a connection on two devices, selecting files and so on.
Software – Android 6, TouchWiz and other things
Inside Android 6.0.1, the current flagships and two-year-old models will receive the same software, at the same time or a little later than the S7/S7 EDGE goes on sale. As before, this device has TouchWiz, but it has been heavily redesigned to suit the Android style, and now the entire system is perceived as very airy and light, everything looks organic together. The speed of the UI is excellent, it flies, there are simply no slowdowns. Again, it all depends on personal perception, someone sees brakes in what other people consider immediate.
The software has a lot of features, you will need to talk about them separately, which is what I did, read the full review and watch the video about this software.
Additional accessories
A new wireless charger will be available for these models; it differs from the old one in that it has a 50-degree tilt and you can place your phone on it. There will be leather bumpers (leather back), as well as a case with two interchangeable lenses.
From what I was able to try, I would like to note standard book covers, including those with an LED screen. Look at the pictures of these accessories, then you can also watch the video where I explain and show how they work.
Comparison with Galaxy S6
Samsung has prepared an infographic showing why the new device is better than the S6, everything is very clear in it.
Impression
There are no complaints about the quality of speech reproduction or call volume; these devices are excellent; perhaps, their radio path quality is one of the best on the market. And this has long become a kind of mania; Samsung is finishing off what is already good. However, as we saw in the review, they do this for many components of their flagships.
It’s a thankless task to evaluate new devices based on pictures or even photographs. In the case of S7/S7 EDGE it is doubly ungrateful. It seems to be the same materials, the same design, but you need to take the device in your hand to realize the difference. And it is not in favor of the previous generation. You need to touch these devices in person and see how they work, how responsive the menu is, how the camera records, and it is advisable to do this in the twilight to realize the differences.
We are accustomed to the fact that each new generation of flagships from Samsung provides new technologies and sets the bar for performance, as well as for what can be built into the devices. Today these are the most functional solutions of all, but last year the refusal of memory cards upset many. Now this flaw has been corrected, and everything is back to normal. But they also added enhanced shock protection, IP68 protection against drowning. Plus, we increased the battery and optimized the system so that the operating time increased by 1.5-2 times. All this together suggests that the models turned out to be not very successful, but extremely successful.
The new camera module gives excellent results; it is a breakthrough in a direction where no one expected serious improvements. I didn’t expect at all that the difference would be visible in life. And this is a serious bid to maintain its advantage in this area; other devices are approaching Samsung in terms of photography, but they cannot catch up.
From an engineering point of view, these devices are small masterpieces, they were stuffed with the latest technologies and made them work. What are the improvements in the display that are not visible, but make our lives better and easier? It would not be amiss to note that other companies, and primarily Apple, get to the point of using similar technologies only years later; they simply do not have the opportunity to do something similar. They are too far behind in development, and this can be seen in almost every piece of hardware. I have a very positive perception of the new flagships, and the fact that the previous generation sold well in Russia says a lot about the changed orientations of people during the crisis. The same S6, thanks to its affordable price, has become the most popular flagship, followed by the iPhone 5s 16 GB. The choice of a three-year-old model remains a mystery to me, but people see some meaning in it. But everything is gradually changing, slowly and surely ordinary people are realizing what fast charging is in real life, what high-quality screens look like and why Android gives freedom of use. I have no doubt that the seventh generation Galaxy will be very successful, there are all the prerequisites for this, the devices turned out to be interesting.
The cost of the S7 is 49,990 rubles, this is the most affordable flagship of the latest generation, the price has not changed compared to when the S6 came out a year ago. You can choose the S7 EDGE as an alternative to this device.
Considering that the S7 EDGE comes at a price of 59,990 rubles, this can be considered an additional payment for a larger screen, battery and better image component.
The choice between S7 and S7 EDGE is obvious; I like the older model better, it looks more interesting. Another thing is that perhaps you are a fan of more compact sizes.
But as a final word, I can say that Samsung has produced models that are head and shoulders above their competitors, and they are not just good quality, they are the best that is on the market today. And without compromise.
