For a lot
of people, the only comparison worth making in the smartphone world is between
the latest and greatest from Samsung(www.samsung.com)
and Apple(www.apple.com)
, and with their respective flagship release cycles out of sync. Here is a
comprehensive look at the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge vs Apple iPhone 6s Plus.
|
|
Samsung
Galaxy S7 Edge
|
iPhone
6s Plus
|
|
Display
|
5.7-inch Super AMOLED display
Quad HD resolution, 518 ppi |
5.5-inch IPS LCD display
Full HD resolution, 401 ppi |
|
Processor
|
2.1 GHz quad-core Qualcomm
Snapdragon 820
Adreno 530 GPU |
1.8 GHz dual-core Apple A9
PowerVR GT7600 GPU |
|
RAM
|
4 GB
|
2 GB
|
|
Storage
|
32 GB
expandable via microSD card |
16/64/128 GB
no expansion |
|
Camera
|
12 MP rear camera with OIS
5 MP front-facing wide angle lens camera |
12 MP rear camera with OIS
5 MP front-facing camera |
|
Connectivity
|
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
Bluetooth 4.2 GPS + GLONASS NFC USB 2.0 |
a/b/g/n/ac
Bluetooth 4.2 GPS + GLONASS NFC ( with Apple Pay only) USB 2.0 |
|
Software
|
Android 6.0 Marshmallow
|
iOS 9
|
|
Battery
|
3,600 mAh
|
2,750 mAh
|
|
Dimensions
|
150.9 x 72.6 x 7.7 mm
157 grams |
158.2 x 77.9 x 7.3 mm
192 grams |
|
Price
|
Starting at N205,000
|
Starting at N190,000
|
Design
Both smartphones
retain a lot of the design language from their respective previous iterations,
even more so in the case of the iPhone 6s Plus, but with subtle improvements
being made to further enhance the experience. In the case of the Apple
flagship, that involves the use of higher grade aluminium for the build to help
avoid any “bendgate” issues, but apart from being a touch thicker, the iPhone
6s Plus is otherwise identical to its predecessor.
The
Galaxy S7 Edge is also slightly thicker than the Galaxy S6 Edge, but that helps
reduce the camera protrusion on the back significantly. Borrowing a design
element from the Galaxy Note 5, there are also curves along the sides of the
back, to help the device nestle nicely in the palm of the hand, which makes for
a better handling experience.
Both the iPhone 6s Plus and the
Galaxy S7 Edge come with 5.5-inch displays, but the former does have a larger
overall footprint compared to the latter. The larger bezels along the sides of
the display and the top and bottom portions of the iPhone contribute to its
size, while in the case of the Samsung flagship, the side bezels are almost
non-existent. Both devices are large and don’t offer the most comfortable
one-handed experience, but the iPhone 6s Plus definitely requires a lot more of
stretch, and its extra width makes for a less secure grip in the hand as well.
The iPhone 6s Plus comes with a
full metal unibody design which looks and feels great in the hand, and while
the Galaxy S7 Edge comes with a metal frame, the rear backing is glass. The
glass reflects a lot of light, and makes the phone look fantastic, but it does
have its disadvantages as well. For starters, despite the glass panel being of
the Corning Gorilla Glass 4 variety,
a hard enough falls will cause some damage. Secondly, the glass backing is a
big fingerprint magnet, which takes away from the great look of the device.
The
iPhone 6s Plus is significantly heavier than the Galaxy S7 Edge, with weights
of 0.192kg and 0.157kg respectively. The difference in thickness between in the
two is negligible, and even though that isn’t actually the case, the Galaxy S7
Edge appears to be the thinner of the two, courtesy of the curved edges on the
front and back.
The power
button is on the right side on both devices, but while it is placed within easy
reach at the middle in the case of the Samsung device, it sits pretty high up
on the iPhone, making it quite uncomfortable to get to. The volume rockers are
on the left side, but with the iPhone, you also get a very useful hardware
toggle that lets you quickly and easily silence the phone.
We may have different build
materials on show here, but both Apple and
Samsung have managed to design a couple of beautiful and premium smartphones.
Of course, aesthetics comes down to personal preference, so it is up to you as
to which look you prefer more. However, it has to be said that when it comes to
ease of use and the overall handling experience, the Galaxy S7 Edge does have
the leg up over its Apple competition.
Display
The Galaxy S7 Edge comes with a
5.5-inch Super AMOLED display with a Quad HD resolution, resulting in a pixel
density of 534 ppi, while the iPhone 6s Plus features a 5.5-inch IPS LCD screen
with a Full HD resolution and resulting pixel density of 401 ppi. When
comparing the two displays on paper, it is easy to dismiss the iPhone display
as “just” 1080p, but 1080p more than gets the job done at this screen size.
The
display of the Galaxy S7 Edge is admittedly sharper and clearer, but the real
differences between the two can be seen courtesy of their contrasting
underlying technologies. The Galaxy S7 Edge comes with all that we’ve come to
expect from, and love about, Super AMOLED displays, with the deep inky blacks,
vibrant and saturated colors, high brightness, and great viewing
angles. The colours are a lot more vibrant on the Galaxy S7 Edge display
when compared to the iPhone 6s Plus, but you do have an option to tone it down
in the Settings menu for a more natural color reproduction. The LCD display of
the iPhone also gets brighter than the display of the Samsung phone, but
outdoor visibility isn’t an issue with either device.
As
mentioned, the display of the iPhone 6s Plus definitely allows for a good
viewing experience, but when comparing two, you should prefer the extra
sharpness, more vibrant colours, and overall nicer image that is possible with
the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge.
Performance
Under the hood, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge comes with a
quad-coreQualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, clocked at 2.1 GHz, backed by the
Adreno 530 GPU and 4 GB of RAM, while the iPhone 6s Plus comes with a dual-core
Apple A9 processor, clocked at 1.84 GHz, and backed by the PowerVR GT7600 GPU
and 2 GB of RAM. While a by the numbers comparison is obviously in favor of the
Samsung device, it isn’t really fair in this case, given the completely
different ecosystems that are being catered to.
When it comes to real world everyday performance, both seem
as fast as the other. When opening applications, the Galaxy S7 Edge is a touch
quicker, but as far as loading games is concerned, the iPhone 6s Plus is faster
by quite a margin. While gaming, frame rates are great with both devices, which
is particularly impressive in the case of the Samsung phone, given that it has
a lot more pixels to push. Performance is one aspect where you won’t have
anything to complain about with either smartphone, which is the least we can
expect from the latest and greatest from both these companies.
Hardware
In hardware, both smartphones come
with fingerprint scanners in a similar implementation, embedded into the
physical home button up front. While this is great for unlocking the device
when placed on a flat surface, some may prefer the rear placement of the
scanner seen with other competing smartphones. Both scanners are fast and
accurate, and while the Galaxy S7 Edge requires a slightly longer press to
unlock the device, the faster iPhone falls behind because of the slower
unlocking animations.
The bottom of both devices look
quite similar, with both coming with a single speaker unit on the right side,
along with the charging port at the center. You get a microUSB port with the
Samsung device, while the iPhone comes with a lightning port, which has an
advantage over the former, with the charging cable being reversible. The
speaker of the iPhone 6s Plus is also better, with it being louder, clearer,
and offering a lot more bass. However, the placement of the speakers are not
ideal, and are easy to cover up when holding the phones in the landscape
orientation.
The
return of a couple of key features swings things in favour of the Galaxy S7 Edge.
First is the vaunted return of
expandable storage, which a lot of Samsung fans were happy to see, and while 32
GB is the only option when it comes to internal storage, you can expand it by
an additional 200 GB via microSD card. 16 GB, 64 GB, and 128 GB are the storage
options available with the iPhone 6s Plus, but without expandable storage available,
you will have to fork up quite a hefty premium to pick up one of the higher
storage options.
The
second returning feature with the Samsung device that is much appreciated is
dust and water resistance. The Galaxy S7 Edge comes with an IP68 rating, which
means that you can submerge the device in up to 1.5 meters of water for as long
as 30 minutes, without a negative impact on performance.
When it
comes to the battery, the Galaxy S7 Edge comes with a larger 3,600 mAh battery
compared to the 2,750 mAh unit of the iPhone 6s Plus, but the battery life
available with both is largely similar, which goes to show just how well Apple
has optimized their software package. The Galaxy S7 Edge does have the slight
leg up though, but both phones can comfortably last through a full day with
moderate use.
The
Galaxy S7 Edge extends its advantage in other aspects of the battery, such as
the availability of fast charging, that lets you charge the device fully in
about 75 minutes, compared to the nearly 2 hours it takes to fully charge the
smaller battery of the iPhone 6s Plus. The Galaxy S7 Edge comes with fast
wireless charging capabilities as well.
Camera
Over the
years, Samsung may have made a lot of fun of Apple for their phone cameras
having lower megapixel counts, but this year things are an even field on paper,
with Samsung “downgrading” their camera to a 12 MP unit, while Apple upgraded
theirs to a 12 MP camera as well.
However,
what the Samsung camera features is a larger pixel size, that allows for better
performance in low light conditions, and it also comes with a larger f/1.7
aperture, compared to the f/2.2 aperture of the iPhone 6s Plus. Both smartphone
cameras also come with optical image stabilization and 4k video recording.
Both
camera applications are easy to launch, but it is much easier and faster with
the Galaxy S7 Edge, courtesy of the very useful double tap of the home button
shortcut. In the case of the iPhone, you have to wake the device, and at the
lock screen, slide up the camera shortcut. However, the very fast fingerprint
scanner is actually a disadvantage here, as the device goes past the lock
screen in less than a second, making this shortcut almost impossible to get to
at times.
As far as
the image quality is concerned, the general theme you will notice throughout is
softer, darker images with less contrast with the iPhone 6s Plus,and
more sharpening, contrast, and vibrant colours with the Galaxy S7 Edges.
Both
phones take great 4k video, and thanks to OIS, video comes out very smooth. It
has to be said though, the iPhone videos are much smoother, and while the
Galaxy S7 Edge is not far behind, the software does warp the video a little
more, and the OIS is not as good at removing any shakiness. The Galaxy S7 Edge
has very bright and vibrant colours, which looks really good, although there is
some trouble with exposure. One areas where the Galaxy S7 Edge has the iPhone
clearly beat is when it comes to focus speeds, as the dual pixel technology
instantly locks onto objects.
When
deciding which camera is better, it depends on how often you take photos in
low-lit areas. When it comes to day time shots, both cameras are phenomenal,
and the best that can currently be found. However, when it comes to low-light
situations, the Galaxy S7 Edge definitely has the advantage.
Software
On the
software side of things, the iPhone 6s Plus is running iOS 9.3, while the
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge comes with Android 6.0 Marshmallow out of the box. What
is great about the iPhone is that when Apple releases a new version of their
software, you will receive the update almost immediately, while in the Android
ecosystem, official updates can take a disappointingly long time, unless you
have a Nexus smartphone.
iPhone 6s
Plus Screenshots
iOS
remains quite limited in its functionality however, and there is a lot more you
can do with Android, such as place apps wherever you want, add widgets on the
home screens, download icon packs, change launchers, create gestures, and more.
iOS is a good, albeit simplistic, operating system, but my biggest gripe with it
is with regards to the notification system.
On
Android, a glance at the top left corner will show you what notifications
you’ve missed, but on iOS, you will have to swipe the notification down and swipe
left to see any pending notifications. Getting rid of these notifications also
requires a few extra clicks.
Samsung
Galaxy S7 Edge Screenshots
Each
device has its own unique software feature as well, namely 3D Touch in the case
of the iPhone, and Edge panels with the Galaxy S7 Edge, with both of these
features offering a way to add shortcuts without cluttering the interface.
3D Touch
is pressure sensitive, and pressing down with more force on certain app icons
opens up shortcuts. Edge Panels on the Galaxy S7 Edge allows you to swipe in
from the curved edge of the display, and gives you access to apps, app actions,
widgets, news, weather, and more.
Verdict
The glossy
new Galaxy S7 Edge might win you over with a more compact dimensions, unusual
design, and camera that perform well in low-light situations. Also the expandable storage and dust and water
resistance makes it a great deal. However, the iPhone 6s Plus is a commendable
rival with its superior software user experience and intuitive app ecosystem
Now you have
a thorough review of the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and iPhone 6s Plus. Although, design,
camera performance and Operating System (OS), still comes down to individual
choices. In the long run, it is up to you to decide which phone to pick - the
Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge or the iPhone 6s Plus. But trust, you cannot go wrong
with either of these killer phones.
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