Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge Is Nice, But Doesn’t Thrill: First Impressions Review

The Samsung Galaxy S7 was announced on Sunday. Bloomberg was one of the first sites to report the announcement of Samsung’s latest smartphone and VR accessories.

Samsung Electronics Co. showed off virtual reality hardware alongside its latest Galaxy S7 smartphones, in its latest attempt to breathe life into its premium line and wrest ascendancy back from Apple Inc.

The article adds that the new waterproof phones will start selling on March 11. The S7 has a 5.1-inch screen, and the S7 Edge has a 5.5-inch screen. Both phones look identical to the S6 line, except Samsung is adding a microSD memory card slot. The battery life, especially on the Edge version, is said to be spectacular.

After spending about 15 minutes with the Galaxy S7 Edge, it’s hard to recommend those who have the Galaxy S6 or S6 Edge to upgrade. The S7 Edge is a beautiful phone that has a 5.5-inch Quad HD screen. However, it’s hard to distinguish it from the Galaxy Note 5, which has a 5.7-inch screen. Many would have preferred the S7 Edge to be a smaller phone like it’s brother, the Galaxy S7.

It’s important to note that the Galaxy S7 Edge has the best screen out of any smartphone in existence. The “Edge” parts are more prominent this time, and the reflection on them doesn’t cause the same amount of screen glare as the Galaxy S6 Edge. The colors are incredibly accurate and sharp, but not too sharp like Samsung’s older smartphones with AMOLED screens.

The S7 Edge has the same solid iPhone-like build as the S6 Edge, but the microSD card slot, thankfully, is back. The lack of the microSD card slot is what caused many to skip the S6 and S6 Edge last year. The most interesting design change is the fact that the camera is now flush and not protruding outward like it has been in previous Galaxy S iterations.

Some have complained about the 12MP camera — after all, the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge had 16MP cameras. However, once you turn the camera app on, you’ll see that Samsung made the right choice. The Duel-Pixel technology allows the camera to autofocus instantly, and this isn’t just on paper; it really works! In many ways, the Galaxy S7 Edge camera has similar qualities to DSLR cameras.

The Galaxy S7 Edge runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow along with Samsung’s updated TouchWiz operating system. There are a lot of icons for apps that many people will never use. With a Snapdragon 820 chip and 4GB of RAM, things run smoothly, but not noticeably faster than the Galaxy S6, the Galaxy S6 Edge, and even the Galaxy Note 5. There was a slight delay in starting the Internet app, which is still the worst browser available for Anroid. (For better results, download the Dolphin Browser.)

The Galaxy S7 Edge is, perhaps, the best built smartphone on the market today. It is built better than any iPhone or LG phone. It has a lot of excellent features and is worth the price tag. It is certainly recommended for those who don’t have the Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge, or Note 5. However, those who upgraded their Samsung smartphones in 2015 will likely see very little benefits in upgrading to the Galaxy S6 Edge.

[Photo via Daryl Deino]