Samsung Galaxy S7 review: The best of all worlds

The quick take

The Galaxy S7 is one of the two best phones we've seen in seven iterations of the Galaxy S series. The other is this phone's cousin, the Galaxy S7 edge. It's the best design Samsung has brought to bear, big without being bulky, with a mix of specs and usability you'd expect in a phone of this caliber. Combine with that an outstanding camera and you've got a phone that will serve just about anyone.

The Good

  • Excellent refinement of the GS6
  • Improved battery life
  • A great camera
  • A size that hits the sweet spot

The Bad

  • A lackluster launcher
  • Duplicative software features
  • Still prone to carrier bloatware
  • Lacking some future-proof features

The best Galaxy yet

Galaxy S7 Full Review

It's easy to get caught up in the hype that is the Samsung Galaxy S7. It's easy to look in awe at the over-the-top launch event, which was as entertaining as it was informative, and without being smarmy. It's easy to be affected by the sheer force of the Samsung marketing arm, which went into work the minute the Mobile World Congress launch ended.

But spend some time with the Galaxy S7 and you'll quickly come to the realization that this is a really good phone. Easily one of Samsung's best, if not the best. It's imperfect, sure. It maybe won't be for everyone, but it'll serve the needs of most, and do so better overall than anything else out there.

Much of what you'll find in the Galaxy S7 should be familiar to those who own a Galaxy S6. But Samsung has taken what it did well in its 2015 flagship and and improved it for 2016 — and more important it addressed a number of concerns we had with the GS6.

Let's get into it. This is our Samsung Galaxy S7 review.

About This Review

We've been using a Verizon-branded Samsung Galaxy S7 (SM-G930V) for 10 days in Pensacola, Fla., briefly in Atlanta, and also in the middle of Lake Lanier, Ga. It's running Android 6.0.1 (Build MMB29M.G930VVRU1APB1) with the February security patches.

Our Galaxy S7 was connected to a Huawei Watch for the entirety of the review time.

Watch, listen, learn

Galaxy S7 Video Review

A definite improvement

Galaxy S7 Hardware

Let's start with the basics. The Galaxy S7 isn't a huge departure over 2015's Galaxy S6. Samsung's mainly kept what worked last time, and made it better. And along the way they've worked on some of our concerns.

The Galaxy S7 itself is just about the same size as the Galaxy S6, and the iPhone 6s, while we're comparing things. It's a tad heavier than both, but not so much that you'd notice. Its corners are rounded in the same manner as before.

The biggest difference this year is that the backside has picked up the same sort of curves that we enjoyed on the much larger Galaxy Note 5. So it's a lot more comfortable to hold that the S6. It also feels a lot less plasticky — using more metal will do that. All in all, it's a really good feeling in the hand. "Premium," even. Think of the GS7 as an extension of the GS6 and Note 5, really. It borrows from both while improving on what is already there, but very much still in the same family.

But like other metal phones, it's very possible to ding it up a little bit. We've managed a few pockmarks on the edges already. Undoubtedly there will be others. (It'll be interesting to see how much those stand out on the all-black model.)

And Samsung deserves a quick tip o' the hat for the speaker this year. If you're going to be stuck with a single, downward-facing speaker, you want it to at least be as good as what's in the Galaxy S7. While nothing beats a good front-facing stereo system, it's much improved over the GS6.

Samsung Galaxy S7

The Galaxy S7 display

Samsung kept with a 5.1-inch AMOLED display this year as well. The quad-HD resolution — 2560x1440 — gives about 577 pixels per inch, which is still ridiculously dense. And the panel is still excellent, with crisp colors and deep blacks. It's about as good as you can get — and it's excellent outdoors, in full sunlight. And it's still impressive to see a screen that's so much bigger — and at a much higher resolution — than what Apple's kept in the iPhone, in a body roughly the same size. The stature of this phone goes back to what we had in, say, the 2014 Moto X. It's still large, while absolutely being pocketable. For many folks (including me) this is the sweet spot, or darn close to it.

Samsung Galaxy S7 always-on mode

New for the display is an "Always-on" mode. It's a feature we've seen on other phones, but this is the first time Samsung's going for it. When the phone's just laying around it'll float a little bit of information around on the screen. By default you get the day and date, time, battery level, and basic notifications from a select apps, like Samsung's email client and missed phone calls. Use Gmail? You're out of luck.

The bigger problem is that it's not really useful beyond quickly checking the time, or seeing that you have an email waiting. (And if you're anything like us, you always have an email or text message waiting.) Sure, you've got seven styles of clock from which to choose — or you can go with a monthly calendar view, or a full-bleed patterned image. But none of that comes close to the usefulness of other always-on implementations that let you actually do something with the notifications, or show previews of messages.

But, yes, you'll save battery life by not waking the entire screen when you just need to check the time. So there's that. And if you're wearing a smartwatch, it's even more superfluous.

An excellent fingerprint experience

More useful is Samsung's fingerprint sensor tucked inside the home button. On it's own it's as good as ever. But now that it's on a phone with Android 6.0 Marshmallow — and supports all of the fingerprint features that come baked into Android 6.x and not just Samsung's — it's excellent. Buying things is easier than ever. Password managers are secure but quick to open. And, of course, you can unlock your phone more easily.

That's maybe not a big deal just yet — far too few apps are really using the new fingerprint software yet, but that's changing. And it'll continue to get better as more phones update to Marshmallow, and more new phones launch with it. (And that's to say nothing about Android N coming out later in 2016.)

Oh, and a double-press of the home button is still the fastest way to launch the camera. No other phone comes close.

Galaxy S7 SD card and SIM tray

The SD card returns, and micro-USB stays

One major feature Samsung's brought back with the Galaxy S7 is expandable storage. That is, it's got a microSD card tucked into the SIM card tray. Using that on top of the 32 gigabytes of on board storage — and only about 16 gigabytes or so of that is actually available to you — means you can have up to 200 gigabytes of storage in total. And Samsung has decided to NOT use the Adoptable Storage feature that's in Marshmallow, so you can still use the card to transfer pics and videos and music and movies from one device to another. And you can still move some apps to the SD card, but not all of them. That's absolutely still up to the developer.

Few will question the return of the SD card, but shunning Adoptable Storage will be a questionable decision for a good many who would prefer Samsung use the updated Android feature. But Samsung's being very conservative in this case.

Galaxy S7 in the Gear VR

Another area in which Samsung isn't yet moving to future tech is on the bottom of the phone. The Galaxy S7 continues to use a micro-USB plug and not the newer, reversible USB-C.

That means a couple things. One is that your existing accessories should still work and you won't have to buy new chargers and cables. Another is that the Galaxy S7 will work in the existing Samsung Gear VR virtual reality visor. (And, in fact, Samsung is giving a bunch of them away when folks purchase a Galaxy S7.) Sticking with micro-USB will be another strike against the Galaxy S7 for some people, but Samsung at least has a good argument for not changing things just yet.

More waterproof than you

Now it's time for a little fun. The Galaxy S7 is waterproof. Not quite "take it swimming because you can" waterproof, but it's good for a half-hour in about five feet of water. A quick trip in the shallow end shouldn't kill it. Neither should a spilled drink. Or a dip in a fountain. Whatever. It's rated IP68.

The official line is you're good to 1.5 meters for up to 30 minutes. Anything more than that — deeper or longer — and you're on your own.

And Samsung has done this without any annoying flaps covering the micro-USB port. If you do try to plug in while there's still moisture up in there, you'll get a little warning that things need to dry out first.

It's a cool feature to have, even if it's not really one you should actively use. Safety first and all that. But, seriously, try to keep your phone out of the water.

By the numbers

Samsung Galaxy S7 Specs

Swipe to scroll horizontally
CategoryGalaxy S7Galaxy S6iPhone 6s
Operating SystemAndroid 6.0
Marshmallow
Android 5.1.1
Lollipop
iOS 9
Display5.1-inch
2560x1440
Super AMOLED
5.1-inch
2560x1440
Super AMOLED
4.7-inch
1334x750
IPS LCD
ProcessorQuad-core Snapdragon 820
or Octa-core Samsung Exynos
Octa-core Samsung Exynos 7Dual-core Apple A9
Storage32GB32/64/128GB16GB/64GB/128GB
ExpandablemicroSD
Up to 200GB
NoNo
RAM4GB3GB2GB
Rear Camera12MP f/1.7
1.4-micron pixels
OIS
16MP f/1.9
1.12-micron pixels
OIS
12MP ƒ/2.2
1.22-micron pixels
Front Camera5MP f/1.75MP f/1.95MP f/2.2
ConnectivityWi-Fi 802.11 ac MIMO
Bluetooth v4.2 LE
ANT+, USB 2.0, NFC
Wi-Fi 802.11 ac MIMO
Bluetooth v4.1 LE
ANT+, USB 2.0, NFC
Wi-Fi 802.11ac
Bluetooth 4.2 LE
Chargingmicro-USB
Fast charging
Qi wireless
Powermat wireless
micro-USB
Fast charging
Qi wireless
Powermat wireless
Lightning port
Battery3000 mAh2550 mAh1715mAh
Water resistanceIP68 ratingNoNo
SecurityOne-touch fingerprint
Samsung KNOX
One-touch fingerprint
Samsung KNOX
Touch ID
Dimensions142.4 x 69.6 x 7.9 mm143.4 x 70.5 x 6.8 mm138.3 x 67.1 x 7.1 mm
Weight152g138g143g

Snapdragon or Exynos?

As we go through our reviews of the Galaxy S7 and GS7 edge, it's worth noting that there are actually two kinds of processors out being used by Samsung, depending on where you buy the phone. In the U.S., China and Japan, the phone will have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 quad-core processor. Elsewhere around the world, you'll likely find a Samsung Exynos 8 octa-core processor instead.

Differences between the two phones in terms of performance and battery life should be negligible, but it's worth keeping in mind when you see impressions of the phones from different regions that they may well be using different processors. Our reviews is entirely based on the use of a Snapdragon-powered U.S. model.

TouchWiz-flavored Marshmallow

Galaxy S7 Software

The Galaxy S7 is running Android 6.0.1, which is the newest version of Android available at the time the GS7 is released. It's also got the February 2016 Android security patches.

Another couple points on security. Samsung's KNOX service is on board, of course, useful for allowing you to keep your personal information completely siloed off from your work data. And Samsung's made it even easier with its My Knox app.

And the Galaxy S7 is encrypted, which is increasingly important. But one thing you'll want to check is whether a password or PIN is required to boot and decrypt the phone. The setup process might not have presented that option, and it's a good one to take advantage of.

Beyond that, Samsung is really the only other manufacturer (especially for those of us in this part of the world) you'll run into that has its own app ecosystem. We recommend biting the bullet and signing up for a Samsung account, and then signing into your phone. There are some little things that Samsung will want to update through its own services, and that's the price of admission. Or if you simply don't want to use Google's services but still get new apps, it's an option here.

And you might well need to go hunting for a few new apps, as some surprisingly ones might not pre-loaded. That includes the excellent Samsung Pay, which lets you use your phone for purchases even a store doesn't use contactless payments. Other apps — like Google's productivity apps, or Microsoft's, even — will need to be downloaded later as well. It'll depend on what carrier you got your Galaxy S7 from.

The good news is that Samsung's user interface customizations are about as good as they've ever been. You're going to want to move some things around, but the UI as fast and fluid, and still has plenty of options. You can move apps off the home screen and add folders as you see fit. You can rearrange the app drawer alphabetically, or just search for your installed apps. A chosen few apps also have support for notifications badges, so you can know just how much you're missing out on.

And Samsung still has a one-handed mode, support for multi-window with two apps at once, and about a bazillion other tweaks and features.

Interestingly, the "Briefing" part of Samsung's launcher — that's the Flipboard-powered newsreader tucked into the far-left edge — was turned off by default. Why even bother having it take up space, then?

Dedicated gaming features on the GS7

Game Launcher on Galaxy S7

For the gamers, The GS7 has a dedicated Game Launcher that gives quick access to all the fun stuff. But more than that the Game Tools can shut down notifications so you're not distracted by something more important. Or you can take in-game screenshots or record video. And it's all easily accessible through pop-up style buttons. It's handy as hell, and something we're pretty stoked to see on phones — to say nothing of when Samsung brings this feature to its tablets.

Plus, the Galaxy S7 can take advantage of the new Vulkan gaming APIs, which should future-proof it for a while. If someone tries to tell you Android isn't for gaming, just show them this phone.

So there's still a LOT going on here in the software, but it's smartly done, better designed and fast as anything. And you can always download and use a different launcher if you want.

A word on monthly security updates

We've been placing increased emphasis on monthly security updates since Google announced them in the fall of 2015. And Samsung has dedicated a website to security and what's new in its own updates.

While we applaud the transparency, the truth remains that it's a crapshoot when (or whether) a carrier-branded Samsung phone will be updated. While it's not quite a deal-breaker for us, it's something to keep in mind when purchasing.

There's some definitely room for Samsung — the world's largest smartphone manufacturer — to improve on this front.

Mo' light, mo' problems

Samsung Galaxy S7 Camera

Samsung's cameras have a lot to live up to. They've consistently been among our favorites the last year or so. Of the issues we had with the Galaxy S6, the camera generally wasn't one of them. Same goes for the Galaxy Note 5. Point is, we came into the Galaxy S7 with very high expectations to begin with, and even more so when Samsung immediately went to the mat with the iPhone over which takes better pics — particularly in low light.

Samsung's changed things up a little bit in the Galaxy S7, though. On one hand there aren't really any gimmicks here. No second lens or anything. There's one on the back, smack in the middle of the phone. And your usual sort of selfie-shooter on the front. (Also just one there).

The larger pixels, stabilization, and ƒ/1.7 aperture mean you should get better pictures overall, and better shots in low light.

But the rear camera now uses a 12-megapixel sensor — down from the 16MP sensor in the previous generation phones. But the sensor itself has larger individual pixels — 1.4 microns, up from the previous 1.12 microns. Larger pixels mean more light. (If this sounds familiar, it's exactly what HTC touted with the 'UltraPixel' camera in the One M7.) And that — combined with optical image stabilization and an even wider ƒ/1.7 aperture — theoretically means you're going to get better pictures overall, and better shots in low light.

(Plus the camera doesn't stick out from the back of the phone as far anymore, since the phone itself is thicker.)

Samsung Galaxy S7 camera

In reality, though, the end results have been a bit mixed. The act of taking a picture remains as great as ever. Samsung's camera app is excellent, and feature-rich without being overwhelming. You will need to spend a little time poking around to find everything, but there are a bunch of cool things to play with.

It's the end result that's ... well, it's a little confusing. We're gotten some great shots out of the Galaxy S7 in daylight, for sure. But we've also gotten some that have a good bit of yellow tinge to them. Or others with details that aren't as crisp as we expected. Or a beautiful blue sky that's noisy when viewed at 100 percent. Or sometimes the shot is simply blown out with any sort of direct sunlight. It's good, but maybe there's a little more tuning to be done? (When is there not, though.)

Low light is supposed to be where the Galaxy S7 really excels. It's good. It's really good. But it's not a miracle worker.

Low light is supposed to be where the Galaxy S7 really excels. And, again, the answer is "it depends." Give it some light to work with and it does pretty well. Maybe it's not quite as magical as the GS6 and Note 5 seemed to be, or our expectations are that much higher now. It's good. It's really good. But it's not a miracle worker.

We're picking nits here a little bit. Maybe more than a little bit. For most people this camera is going to be more than good enough. If all you're doing is sharing to Facebook and Twitter and Instagram and whatever anyway, it's a great camera to have. I could probably get away with it for work shots, if I wanted to. (And maybe I already have.)

The front-facing camera weighs in at 5 megapixels. So you can selfie as much as you want. And that end of things works as well as we'd expect it to.

Loads of camera app features, for better or worse

Back to the camera app. Again it's easily among the best out there. You've got options for all kinds of modes, including a manual mode ("Pro," if you will) that gives full control over ISO and white balance and shutter speed and the like. Plus you can save images in the RAW format, like professional photographers do. Or there's selective focus, panorama, a video collage, live video broadcasting through YouTube, slow motion shots, a Matrix-style virtual shot, dedicated food mode, and hyperlapse. And you can download more modes from the Samsung app store.

One cool new feature is that when you're shooting a panorama, any objects moving through the frame will actually move in the panorama instead of being chopped in half. You've got the option to view the panorama like normal in the gallery app. (And if you do, anything moving inside the pano is going to look messed up.) But if you hit the motion button in the top right, you get a different version that lets drag your finger over the pano to move left or right — and then anything inside it moves. (You also can tilt the phone to pan.)

It's a really neat trick, no? Problem is, it's only neat on the phone. You can share the panorama file just like you always could. But, again, anything moving inside it is going to look very broken. You can export the motion pano as a video file. But that's not quite as magical either — you're just watching a video then. On the device? It's great. But it's stuck there.

Virtual shot is kind of in the same boat. You rotate around an object and get a crude Matrix-like shot. Sounds great, but doesn't quite live up to expectations.

So, again, you'll want to explore the features. Some will be more useful than others. But all in all it's still an excellent camera experience.

Samsung Galaxy S7

The daily driver

Galaxy S7 Real-World Use

So how is the Galaxy S7 to use as a daily driver? In a word, excellent.

It's big, but not in the HUGE category. That's maybe my favorite thing about it. It'll comfortably fit in your pants pocket, and easily slip into a purse. You'll be able to put a case on it without making the phone into something bigger.

Of course, the carriers in the U.S. are going to do their thing. Verizon bloats it up pretty good with a number of apps that mostly duplicate what either Samsung or Google already brought to the table. Want simultaneous voice and data? You got it — if you've got Verizon's Advanced Calling turned on. (And I didn't at first. It showed up as an update at some point.)

Other carriers will do their things to this phone, too — and not always for the better. To that end, we REALLY want to see Samsung sell unlocked, unadulterated phones on its own in the U.S. Once again, that's the sort of thing you'd expect the largest smartphone manufacturer in the world to do in the U.S.

I've been using the GS7 in its early days. That also means things occasionally break. Android Auto has yet to work for me. That also was temporarily the case with the Galaxy S6, though, when it was initially released. That could be a Verizon thing — it does some funky stuff when you plug it in to your car — or it could be a matter of the services behind Android Auto not yet being updated for the GS7. Or both.

And while TouchWiz is as good as it's ever been, I'll still be using a different launcher on my Galaxy S7. To each his own. At the very least you should move your frequently used apps onto the home screen and not just leave them buried in the app drawer. Do not be afraid to move things around.

Between 12 and 15 hours of battery life with moderate use isn't out of the question with the Galaxy S7.

Nothing about the Snapdragon 820 has really stood out to me. The phone sometimes gets warm, but nothing like what we experienced in the early days of the 810. The 4GB of RAM so far has seemed to be enough, too. I haven't had any issues with the 4 gigabytes of RAM, either. If you're the sort who likes to find out exactly when apps get dumped from memory, you may well see something different. But in normal use, things have been just fine for me.

Battery life has been decent. I'd say acceptable. Jumping from 2,550 milli-amp-hours in the Galaxy S6 to 3,000 in the GS7 isn't a huge change — about a 17 percent increase. But that combined with the Snapdragon 820 processor and its power usage improvements, and we're not scrambling for a charger nearly as fast as we were with the GS6. Between 12 and 15 hours of moderate use isn't out of the question, and that's without employing any of Samsung's battery-saving tech. And while the GS7 uses Qualcomm's Quick Charge 2.0 and not the newer (and faster) 3.0, you can still get about 45 percent of a full charge in 30 minutes. (I was measuring about 8V @ 1.6A.) It's pretty quick in any event. Battery life (on Verizon at least) won't blow you away. But it's definitely better than the Galaxy S6 was.

Call quality has been fine, and I didn't have any issues with Bluetooth or GPS. It's a phone, and it does normal phone things.

And Samsung's keyboard deserves a mention here. I always try the stock keyboard for a little while before switching back to SwiftKey. Samsung's keyboard in the Galaxy S7 has lasted the longest. The prediction is pretty good. I'm digging the default number row. My only complaint is that the long-press keys are tiny and tough to see in a hurry. (I'm still getting used to the layout, but that doesn't mean folks shouldn't be able to find things.) But it's nice having visual consistency when an app or the Android UI switches to a number layout.

One thing we'd love to see tweaked, however, is how Samsung's keyboard aggressively predicts email addresses — and usually not to the writer's benefit. Someone's going to get in trouble over that pretty quick.

All in all? Great phone. Great experience, even when you have Verizon clunking things up a little bit with bloatware and a ho-hum out-of-box user interface. (Seriously, don't be afraid to move things around.)

The bottom line

Should you buy it? Yes!

It's not all that often we can recommend a phone without any real hesitation. The Galaxy S7 is one of those. Samsung has improved on most of our complaints from the Galaxy S6 era. Battery life is improved. Not great, but adequate. The overall design is better and less slippery, and it takes a case well without becoming too large. The display size hits that 5.1-inch sweet spot. The fingerprint feature is excellent.

And while we're a little back-and-forth on the camera, that's because Samsung is among the manufacturers that we tend to hold to a higher standard in that regard. The Galaxy S7 camera should, in any event, serve you just fine.

There's a reason Samsung's going to sell tens of millions of these things. One is that the Samsung marketing machine is in full effect. You're going to hear a whole lot about the Galaxy S7, just about anywhere you turn. And for a long time. (OK, at least until the next next big thing comes out.)

But the other is that the Galaxy S7 is just one hell of a phone.

Where to buy the Galaxy S7

This is always a tricky question when it comes to a device that's available globally from a variety of retailers, but we can at least offer up some handy links of those who want to buy in the U.S. from one of the major carriers. Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint all have the Galaxy S7 for sale.

See at Amazon (opens in new tab)   See at AT&T (opens in new tab)   See at Sprint  See at T-Mobile (opens in new tab)   See at Verizon (opens in new tab)

Also: Read our Galaxy S7 edge review!

The Galaxy S7 is just one half of Samsung's 2016 tag-team event. The larger Galaxy S7 edge sports a 5.5-inch display with a curved "edge" screen. It's also got a 20 percent larger battery than the Galaxy S7. For some, that will be a reason to buy.

Hit the link below for our comprehensive Galaxy S7 edge review.

Read our GS7 edge review here!

Phil Nickinson
192 Comments
  • iPhone 6 runs Lollipop? Looks like it's been fixed :) Very nice review, trying to get my wife interested since her Galaxy Alpha is struggling.
  • My wife and I, is also thinking about upgrading our Galaxy Alpha's with a couple of S7. But according to Samsung, Galaxy Alpha should receive Marshmallow in June, so we will wait and see, the phones are working fine and we really like the size of the Alpha. Posted via the AC App
  • Hi very body , hoy is everyone Posted via the Android Central App
  • Who please Posted via the Android Central App
  • I love the size and look of this phone. I'd pay big bucks if that could be a Nexus.
  • Agreed, they've always had good/great hardware. It's the software that turns me away. I wonder if illiterate people get the full effect of alphabet soup
  • So software is the problem? have you ever owned and used a Galaxy? did you also know most people have problems with products such like cars, machines, computers, camera etc.. because operator error not the product itself?
  • I've owned multiple Galaxies (including the S6) and I agree with him. Love the hardware, but the software gets in the way in my opinion. It's gotten better over time for sure...and buying an unlocked international version does help. The nice thing is...there are lots of choices.
  • Yes... Software is garbage. Phones and specs are beautiful....
  • stock android all the way!!!
  • You and me both bro. Maybe one day
  • The size is perfect! Posted via the Android Central App
  • Hmm... Surprised by the relatively lackluster performance of the camera. That's one area where Samsung rarely - if ever - falters. Posted via the Android Central App
  • ... And yet they still say it's an outstanding camera in the summary while trying to downplay its shortcomings in the camera section. The way the camera section reads makes it seem like it's a step down from the GS6 & Note 5. Posted via the Android Central App
  • They made it very clear that was based completely on their overly high expectations based on prior cameras from the S6 and N5 - in other words, it's likely in about the same camp as the S6/N5.
  • Never seen a recent review that included so much dancing around a conclusion about a camera. Clearly Phil was afraid to say anything negative about camera on one of the most popular phones out. When reviewers start saying "good enough", I know it has problems. Ultapixel, yeah, didn't work for HTC and it doesn't seem to be working here. In theory it should be better in low light, problem is, reality says different. This just might be the break LG has been waiting for. LG has been neck and neck with Samsung in the camera area. We will see how the G5 stacks up. Something tells me it is going to kick Samsung's camera's butt.
  • Note 6 > anything LG or Samsung has make up until this point
  • Oh you've used the not-yet-created Note 6? Cool! Can I borrow your time machine? Posted via the Android Central App
  • It'll probably be like the Note 5 (as in, uses the same camera from the S-series). Posted via the Android Central App
  • LOL, note 7 too then. how do you know note 6 better than all ? https://galaxys7giveaway.com/
  • Note 10 or GTFO
  • True VZW Moto X DE/N7
  • The low light on the s7 edge is incredible. Got it today and have been testing it hard Posted via the Android Central App
  • Yeh, personally I don't give a rats arse about low light crap. Most of my photos will be taken in daylight, so I expect my camera to be at least as good as the S6!
  • You won't until you see what it can do.
  • You're reading too much into it. They're saying it's really good even though it can't see through lead so the Super Phone has a weakness. Calm down. I've had the phone for a week (T-Mobile pre-order) and it's the best Android phone to date. The camera may not be as improved as they thought it would be but that doesn't make it less of a winner. A win in 5 games instead of the predicted 4 game sweep is still a WIN.
  • The camera is great on this thing. At least the same in normal use as the s6 but in low light it blows the s6 out of the water easily. Posted via the Android Central App
  • I played with one at BB for about 10 min and could tell the camera was disappointing. Lots of noise in the dark/shadow areas and lack of detail when enlarged. Honestly, my MXPE has a better camera.
  • Sticking with the better V10 camera. Posted via the Android Central App
  • The one thing I really miss from the V10 is LG's camera app. It's by far the best from any manufacturer and beats anything offered on the Play Store. Posted via the Android Central App
  • I haven't had time to properly test the camera on the S7 since I've only had it for less than 24 hours and I have yet to get the G4 back from repair, so I don't want to immediately judge the camera (I will be putting it against the G4 and the Nokia's).
    .
    HOWEVER, I am NOT surprised about the loss in sharpness and the noise when viewing photos at 100%. When Alex wrote that article saying the reduce to 12mp wasn't a bad thing, I warned that it wasn't a good thing. I knew the loss of megapixels WOULD decrease the quality of the shots because, no matter the size of the pixels, if there's less of them, there's less information for the software to work with when composing the shot. Plain and simple. I got a sh*t ton of criticism for saying it and a couple of people insisted I didn't know what I was talking about. Well...yeah. There you have it. I don't know how this will fair against the G5, but it's very likely that LG will win the camera war for the second year in a row. We'll see.
    .
    That said, I'm very pleased with everything else on the S7 so far. SPECIALLY with TouchWiz's theme engine. The first thing I did was go to the theme store and install the "Black Edition" theme. After that, all I had to do was install Nova Launcher and done. My phone on a post-Lollipop version of Android now FINALLY looks like a decent phone, without any of the Material colours crap or the white backgrounds everywhere.
    For all the things TouchWiz may do bad (I'm not even giving it a shot), the theme engine is enough to make me admit that I'd rather have a phone with this TouchWiz than any other skin and specially not with stock Android. I admit though...the switching of places between the back button and the multitasking button still gets on my nerves. It makes no sense to me and it's different for the sake of being different.
  • Something tells me that the software processing is also to blame here. I've used the 6P and 6S and they're pretty good in many situations. The daylight shots of the sky look a bit like my G4's, albeit in a 4:3 ratio as opposed to my G4's 16:9 ratio. Given that Andrew's main complaint about the camera is the dynamic range, I presume either the software or the dynamic range of the sensor itself could be to blame, but to be frank, after looking at the S7's samples, not one of them said "Wow, Samsung. You flopped hard on this camera". It's still a great shooter. Maybe not as great as its predecessors in daylight, but we'll see when some updates come out.
  • A friend of mine just came home from a wedding over the weekend raving about the Galaxy's camera compared to her iPhone (which I believe is the 6S) I really think people are overreacting.
  • I still think it's a great shooter. After looking at the samples, not one looked bad. In fact, they were all pretty good. Dynamic range might be a bit iffy, but the samples largely looked good to me.
  • Personally, I like the Prism Light theme. It's cheesy and Neon, but I like a little bit of color with my blacks. I really like it otherwise, too, but I am getting used to how this phone calculates battery life. It seems different than my previous Samsung phones for some reason. It is really conservative on it's listed usage left. When I take it off the charger, it says I have 10 hours of battery left, but it seems to last longer than that throughout the day without too much charging.
  • Samsung has had the Back button on the right since the first Galaxy S in 2010. Even the first Android phone released in 2008 had the back button on the right. That's called consistency of the user experience.
  • Well, this is my first Samsung. I've used a plethora of other phones before, from Symbian to WP to Android. All had the back button on the left.
    Samsung may be consistent on this...but it doesn't exempt them from having that switched for absolutely no reason other than being different.
  • I would believe Samsung may have researched which side is more ergonomic to most people more than I'd believe Google or whoever developed Android researched it. Having said that, I prefer it on the left simply because that is what I am used to at this point.
  • I don't think so.
    Majority of the people are right handed and also back button on Android is used far more often than the multitasking window. So the right thumb is much easier to reach there - more comfortable and efficient, given how the phones are held in general. Not to mention that keeping those capacitive buttons so low makes it even more uncomfortable. VZW Moto X DE/N7
  • So their user experience is consistently bad then. Samsung can change the button placements just as easily as they took away SD cards and infrared, removable backs and micro USB. Quite frankly... It would be easier for the user if they didn't have to reach the thumb down to the bottom right corner of the phone to hit the button that is used just as much as the one in the middle. It would be even better for the user if the buttons were raised up a bit. Kinda like all of those pesky on-screen button setups Samsung lovers often hate on. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Yeah, it's to the point where I've quit complaining about it. Just not gonna change anything.
  • Love the lgv10 let's me move around and decide my buttons Posted via the Android Central App
  • "Good Enough" to use Phil's words. So LG has a better camera. Like he said, if you are just going to use it for Facebook pictures, it will work just fine. Of course I am being sarcastic. Sorry Phil, last time someone told me a phone camera was "good enough" was with the Moto X, and it just wasn't. It defines something less then it should be.
  • The S7 camera is very good! I just don't think it will be able to beat the G5's (not sure it beats the G4 either but I'll have to test it first).
    But in everything else the S7 is better than the G5 (and this is coming from someone who never liked Samsung, had a G4 and is pretty picky with the cameras on his phones) Posted via the Android Central App
  • Should beat your Z3C's camera, lol
  • Low megapixel count can explain lack-of-sharpness, but I have my doubts here. 12mp isn't bad at all.... I'm betting on other aspects that can explain it. Lens, software, etc.
    But this takes more testing, as you say.
  • Except for LG to win the camera war two years in a row they would have had to win last year, which they didn't. Posted via the Android Central App
  • "Best of all worlds"? Hardly. Horrible choice for the world of power-users who don't want to or are unable to be tethered to a wall plug or USB battery pack to recharge their phone. On my S5 I pop in a spare fully-charged battery in under 10 seconds and I'm good to go... no tether, no wires, no waiting. Every single excuse Samsung, Apple, and anyone else gives as to why it's not possible to have a removable battery is BS... the S7 is the same thickness as the S5 which had a removable battery.
  • Cool story bruh. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Then get a G5 and move on with your life.
  • There's the LG G5 which has a metal unibody and a removable battery. It's design limitations that make a removable battery not feasible unless they do a serious design change like with the G5
  • Unfortunately the LG G5 doesn't have an OLED screen. After 3 phones in a row now with OLED, I can't stand to downgrade to LCD.
  • If you care so much about not needing to worry about juice or if you're a power user like you claim then replaceable battery is far more important than OLED or LCD. Posted via the Android Central App
  • I was the biggest fan of Amoled even when it was realistically Horrible - S3 , Moto X and was Stunned when Note 4 and 5 were released. But, when I started to care more about camera and watching videos I realised how hard was to get a proper rgb calibration on Samsung's panels. It's impossible to get the pentile sub pixel structure with extra greens compensated through some software tweaks. When it comes to true to life colors they are better than ever before , but still far from most of the high quality IPS displays.
    My N7 is still superior to any Samsung I played with. VZW Moto X DE/N7
  • Warning: I am AC's resident IPS fan-boy. Now that I have that out of the way ... Downgrade? I think you must have meant upgrade! Posted via the Android Central App
  • I'm right there with ya. Not a fan at all of nonremovable batteries. And I don't get why so many ppl are ok with it either. Android is and always has been about options and customization. Taking away removable batteries is less options; the antithesis of Android. I have two lines, one a note4 and one a s5, both are awesome phones and it's gonna take a lot to replace them. Both are getting MM so I'm good. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Thank you, Greanmachine. It surprises me too the vitriol from other users who are so offended that one might want to retain the feature of removable batteries. It's as if there's this loud subset of Android fans who are jealous about how much iPhone users are being screwed by Apple. Removable batteries and expandable storage were some of the original differentiating benefits of Android over iPhone, which never had either. In fact, these were classic, common phone features even BEFORE smartphones. Pro-tip: if you don't care about removable batteries, no one is making you remove your removable battery. Just leave it in. Meanwhile though all of us who need this feature can also have a viable upgrade too.
  • *solid pro-tip Posted via the Android Central App
  • I agree with your comment about removable batteries. I want it but my question is about waterproofing. If you can remove the battery, won't it make it that much harder to keep it waterproof? Posted via Android Central App
  • Having a removable battery is much more important than having waterproof(ness)......IMHO of course! We've all had phones without it before so no different now.
  • I get that some people want removable batteries. Most people understand where you're coming from. However, you do have to admit you are in a very strong minority now. Also, fast/rapid/quick charging has also made this a lot less of an issue. So your group of people that want removable batteries is shrinking further. Samsung makes this phone for what the majority of their customers want. Again, your point is understood. But you're probably going to have to get over the fact that Samsung probably won't have a removable battery in this line of phone...and most people don't care that it's gone.
  • If you like the note 4 you will love the lgv10 Posted via the Android Central App
  • My favorite thing about my v10... Never going to be without a removable battery again Posted via the Android Central App
  • Any characters to spill on how the audio sounds through the audio jack? Or do you guys really not care about audio? Posted via the Android Central App
  • There's going to be some detailed analysis in the not-so-distant future on the audio capabilities. Long story short there's likely a noticeable difference in quality between the Qualcomm and Exynos variants and we need to be sure before going much further.
  • That's what I was fearing. Thanks Russ :) Posted via the Android Central App
  • To clarify, that's what I was fearing about the Snapdragon vs Exynos. Posted via the Android Central App
  • That's what I expected, Qualcomm has a integrated DAC while they use a dedicated DAC for the Exynos variants (I think I read it was a custom Cirrus chip) since it doesn't have it integrated, and Qualcomm's integrated audio has never been very good
  • Nothing bothers me more than when the damn screen lights up when another call comes in, when the thing is pressed against my face. Then some part of my ear mutes me, connects the incoming call, or hangs up on my original call. Have I mentioned how much I hate TouchWiz??
  • I wish you could stop the screen turning on when you get a text using the Samsung messaging app (which I prefer as it can be themed with the Samsung theme engine). Posted via the Android Central App
  • I have always hated that feature. Thankfully, my wife likes it so I haven't had to find a new messaging app that looks exactly like Samsung's but without that annoying "feature".
  • I don't know what sort of themeing you want to do but give Textra a try. I've been using it since my G4 days and I've replaced the S7 native messenger with it. Posted via the Android Central App
  • I'm in a love affair with the Edge now. Is this even appropriate?
  • Should make for some amazing selfies.
  • trying to find unlocked s7 snapdragon version with no bloatware.. any luck? AC@OPO
  • I would just like an unlocked version that will support most bands.
  • How you guys being tech savvy and tolerate the Verizon version is beyond me. Posted via the Android Central App
  • It's called "Being pretty good at this and able to use anything anyone throws at us."
  • Bam! Citizens 4 Constitutional Freedom
  • Phil is like an urban legend. Rumor has it he got a rock to connect to project fi.
  • Verizon is huge. They make money based on clicks to this site. Of course they are going to tolerate it.
  • Tolerate? Because reviewers can be anywhere in the US and need a review phone that works everywhere, unlike the magenta version.
  • This phone is awesome! Citizens 4 Constitutional Freedom
  • This looks pretty nice but I just wont spend 700+ on a carrier phone anymore. Bloat and slow updates are just not worth it to me. I wish Samsung would sell an unlocked, carrier free model that was updated directly from Samsung. I know many do not put the same emphasis on these things as I do so have fun with the new S7 series, they look pretty nice!
  • Amen to this man. Can't do bloat just can't do it. And a galaxy updated on an almost as frequent as nexus schedule? They'd sell A LOT. In Google I trust.
  • Just move to Europe. We have all of that here ;) Posted via the Android Central App
  • Did anyone else see a bit of lag still when he was using the Android market? Dammit. I hate lag. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Android Market?! I haven't heard that term in years. Damn, I miss those days. That was so much better than "Play Store". Posted via the Android Central App
  • +1 AT&T Galaxy Note 3 (On T-Mobile)
  • "Oh, and a double-press of the home button is still the fastest way to launch the camera. No other phone comes close." Really? Faster than picking up the phone while twisting it and having it ready to take a picture, like in most Moto phones???
  • Close, but yes. (And I'm a big fan of how Moto's done it.) I think Samsung does it a little better. Moto's tended to slow down on me over time (that's gonna be a software management as much as anything), and I'm way less likely to accidentally throw it while pressing the home button.
  • Doesn't Sony have a dedicated camera button? Google Nexus 6P
  • Yes. And THAT is the best and fastest way to open a camera.
    Dedicated camera buttons should be mandatory in every flagship phone. Shame they aren't. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Yah. Like how Nokia used to do it. And I love the way how you have 2 stage click on the Lumia dedicated camera button. Posted from my Samsung Galaxy S6
  • Dedicated camera button is good to have but it's definitely not the fastest way to open the camera because of its position - you have to move your hand a bit to press it. Which is not the case with Samsung's home button implementation.
  • Is there a reason for QC2.0 and not 3.0. Or just lower licensing fees? Posted via the Android Central App
  • Conventional wisdom is because of the Exynos models.
  • Can't wait to get my hands on one :D
  • So, this or the Nexus 6p? Going to be in the market very soon.
  • Value goes to the 6P, and the guaranteed 2 years of fast updates is unique. In Google I trust.
  • Value and stock android vs features. That's what it would come down to I think for most people. The average person doesn't care what version of Android they are on.
  • I wouldn't buy anything with last year's snapdragon tech. But that's just me. If Samsung is your only option and you have the cash... Go for it. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Idk man on the 810 of the 6p vs the 820 of this guy there may be a nano second difference in day to day performances. In Google I trust.
  • it is because i know 100% that the 810 was a rush job. the ******* son of sorts. it throttles heavily. so i will always know it could be better in the back of my mind. the arm cores don't help either.
    yet my opo is quicker than the note 5 in day to day tasks. its apples to oranges when comparing touchwiz and such to stock.
  • Nearly every phone out there with near stock Android will match or exceed the performance of any Touchwiz Sammy device. My M7 was faster than my Note 4. The Nexus 5 to this day runs circles around the Note 5 in opening apps, multitasking, etc. The S7 Edge (820) has already lost in performance to the iPhone 6s and almost matched the Nexus 6P running an 810.
  • Definitely this one. Posted via the Android Central App
  • I will take cool features vs bland, boring raw android any day. but that's just what I like.
    If I want plain and boring. I will just keep an iPhone for that.
  • I disagree the Galaxy S6 is the best phone money can buy . The S7 has a glaring problem to little internal memory . SD cards don't matter at all. Internal memory holds programs, program data, e-mails and text messages. You can have 200GB of room on an SD card and have no internal memory and not be able to put on another program or upgrade programs on your phone. Everything you can store on the SD card is already in the cloud so it totally unless. Plus they got rid of the IR port I love using my phone as a universal remote everywhere. I'll stick with my Galaxy S6 Posted via the Android Central App
  • You clearly are not running marshmallow Posted via the Android Central App running on my Galaxy S7
  • Nice review as always Mr Phil. Siskel and Eibert gives you two thumbs up. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Nice review! Thank you Phil. I was waiting on an impression a bit deeper than "initial".
  • "But like other metal phones, it's very possible to ding it up a little bit. We've managed a few pockmarks on the edges already." You must be clumsy. My teenage son has had 3 phones so far, and although he never uses a case or screen protector, he manages to keep each one in perfect condition. You couldn't tell anyone has even used it. If a teenager can do that, why can't an adult? Granted, my daughter is hard on phones, but she's, well, careless and clumsy.
  • Yeah, I have to believe when you don't own the phones, were given them free for review purposes or they are part of a work budget write off you probably don't care about them as much.
  • The same person who complains about how fragile the 6P is. Google Nexus 6P
  • +1 But it's his brand so there's nothing wrong with it Posted via the Android Central App
  • Yeah he's a fukcing joke. Posted from my Nexus 6/Nexus 7 2013/Surface Pro 3
  • Excellent review Phil, thank you. Nice to have another 'phone sized phone' to choose from.
  • 3000mah battery is prefect on these Samsung phones. I keep the screen on my S6 turned to half because otherwise it would be crazy bright. My S6 barely gets me threw the day but the S7 with its bigger battery would be perfect. I am concerned about the camera though. The camera on my S6 is superb. Great review!!! Citizens 4 Constitutional Freedom
  • I have nothing but trouble with samsung s7 battery dies every 4 hours gets hot got a new one yesterday still the ame problem gets hot battery drains without even using phone
  • Hey Phil - Can you clarify what color your review unit is? I'm assuming it's gold, but in some shots it looks more like silver. My wife has a black on pre-order because the gold looked obnoxious in the initial pictures. If it's this subtle then we might switch. Thanks!
  • I can't wait to get my S7 edge tomorrow! Excellent review, as always. Android Central is the first place I go to for reviews because they're thorough and excellent.
  • But hey, this camera seems really promising. It does take very very nice pictures honestly. Not the perfect phone in the wild yet, but I'm inclined to it. Sammy seem to be more mature enough. Posted via the Android Central App
  • What a biased review. Man, is there a good unbiased Android site other there? Posted via the Android Central App
  • You'll have to make one. It's the only way you'll be certain that the reviewer gives exactly what importance you want to each feature of the reviewed devices.
  • Wake me up when they can the bloatware and run pure Android. And get rid of that dumb button on the bottom.
  • Sleep my friend. Sleep forever. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Damn Phil you sound like you could care less about this phone! How much change are people expecting on a phone!? You have the best screen possibly the best battery and one of the fastest processors! It's freaking waterproof and dust proof!! What more do you want?? Posted via the Android Central App
  • I realize, for some, reading is hard. Skip to the end of Phil's extensive review and read "The bottom line" section.
  • Upgraded to an S7 from S5. It arrived today and I was so excited.......... until I took it out of the box. What a huge disappointment. Guess I didn't do enough research. I was expecting a larger display and it is the same size as my S5. Not really interested in a better camera, not my thing, but i did want a larger display area. Anyway, hope there are features in the S7 that will make me happy to have spent the money.
  • Yep you didn't do any research from the statement you've made Posted via the Android Central App
  • really? The screen size is mentioned on almost any post about the S7...
  • Samsung Phones are now on sale only at NewSmartphoneDeals:com
  • Sounds legit Posted from my Nexus 6/Nexus 7 2013/Surface Pro 3
  • Anyone know what the big fuss is over an edge screen? I see no practical use for it and would probably buy the S7 because reviews say that the Edge makes it hard to hold?
  • I've never understood it. Not only does it seem impractical, I think it's just ugly as sin. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Download Glovebox from the Play Store and you'll understand the edge screen. Except the edge screen will now give you a lot of extra information and actions instead of just opening apps; it is also highly integrated into TouchWiz. It's a nice gimmick on great hardware. I'd love to see this phone done by Google or Apple - with proper software.
  • Let's just change the name of the site to samsungcentral.com
  • Oh come on, dude. Every time there's a new phone out and AC is giving it the coverage it deserves, someone has to make that crack. Don't be that guy. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Yeah I'm that guy but not that guy at the same time. Posted from my Nexus 6/Nexus 7 2013/Surface Pro 3
  • CALL THE WAAAMBLUENCE Posted from my Nexus 6/Nexus 7 2013/Surface Pro 3
  • Whatever, this site was solid LG G4 coverage a couple weeks ago. Its an Android news site and the S7 is big Android news at the moment. Deal.
  • Until Samsung brings back a user replaceable battery I'm happy with my S3. Is the battery on this phone user replaceable?
  • Google it Posted via the Android Central App
  • Or read the review another time
  • The thing costs $750. That is more than any other Android phone. It should be better in everything with that price tag. Not jumping on the Samsung hype train. There are too many other really good options out there, at a fraction of the cost. The Galaxy S series phones and many of their fans just strike me as the "Look at my phone, I'm so cool" crowd that Apple people get accused of being. Having a $750 phone doesn't make you cool. It does make you $350-$400 poorer than you should be. Posted via the Android Central App
  • That's a fact Posted via the Android Central App
  • Be together, not the same. Posted via the Android Central App
  • Not to mention lacks of updates... They're better at hardware (if you value waterproofing, wireless charging, curved screens), but at software, Samsung is seriously lacking. I'd rather spend $199 on a Nexus 5. Or $450 on a Nexus 6P for the premium feel. OR BOTH and still come up equal. In fact, I gave up a Note 4 for a Nexus 6P and will not be going back.
  • How much bigger is the S7 edge compared to the S7? Posted via the Android Central App
  • Not that much bigger but the screen feels much bigger. Posted via the Android Central App via a kicking Gold Galaxy S7 Edge.
  • Galaxy S8 will have removable back cover as A new feature Posted via the Android Central App
  • I love my S7 edge and S7 (have them both) Camera is great. They are fast. Screens are just gorgeous. 32gb is plenty for apps. I have 128gb cards in both of mine. Music sound as good as my IPhone that I have for work. I replaced a Note 4 and A5 with the edge and regular S7. I bypassed the S6 as that was not the finished article. The S7 and S7 Edge are. Now just need to figure out what to do with that VR thing. Posted via the Android Central App via a kicking Gold Galaxy S7 Edge.
  • I just saw more camera samples. Honestly, they're still pretty darn good. Okay, maybe daylight isn't quite as stellar as the S6, but I honestly can't make out a significant difference, though some shots could do with better dynamic range. But low-light shots like the ones shot by Andrew are actually pretty darn good. Very good, actually. R.I.P GPe program
  • Hi,
    Some of us chose to forgo the S6 kinda like windows 8. Any chance of comparing it to the S5? The expandable memory was a huge frustration for me. Esp since I keep phones for 2 years. Thanks Laura
  • Can you use the ui system tuner???. All androids in the states suffer from carrier bloat if bought from them. Can't really call that a con. And the launcher is probably better than most with the stuff you get. It's fixed easy anyway with nova. Posted via the Android Central App
  • no.. it's a con. and having to root the thing to get rid of them sucks too. they should be installed but removable. easy peasy
  • This can't honestly be the best of all worlds. Just remember this: Android 7.0 will be out before the end of the year, and buyers of the S7 and S7 edge will see the S8 released before they're able to update. Not to mention monthly security updates. While I love the design of the hardware, I cannot support the software: 1. Carrier models in the US are bogged down with dozens of unremovable applications 2. Updates take months-years to reach users 3. ATT and Verizon models have locked bootloaders, preventing root and ROM installations. 4. Touchwiz is still obtrusive and laggy from early reviews and reports - it is still filled with subpar offerings to Google's own suite of apps. It's a shame we applaud Samsung every year, when they should be getting a 5/10 for their current software offerings.
  • Can anyone confirm or deny stock samsung keyboard lag?? like S6/Edge had. It would work fine for several texts, and then lag, choke/hitch off and on. sometimes would just stop responding. ...
    I have basically decided not to get this device, but as a phone junky, its so dam hard not to get it....
  • The camera is worse than the Nexus 6p, just as I suspected.
  • Helio very one Posted via the Android Central App
  • My ñame is linda,helio everyone Posted via the Android Central App
  • I WAS getting ready to change my SGS4 with this one, since it was almost perfect (although no radio) with sdcard slot, water resistance etc... till I came to know that it has no MHL, why Samsung why?WHY? when you host your customers with something in the past and later you take it out in your new models, is it so difficult to follow an honest path? For me it is very dirty trick to play on your admirers, further why are you following the same marketing strategy as Apple does, don't you realize that Apple brainwashes his clients with something lesser than Samsung has (basically I find iPhone for simple minded people to use, not understanding what your phone can do), keep in mind that US is not your only market, and if you want to keep your PACK of admirers, have your OWN marketing strategy, and instead of taking out features, add OVER it.
  • If your rocking a gs4 the s7 would be a huge upgrade for you , and the most natural one if you want to stay in the samsung s series . This phone is a beast in every way compared to what you have . And all the features you like about the 4 can be downloaded back samsung preposely removed some of the gimmicks to cut down on the bloat but you can add them back Posted via the Android Central App
  • OK I agree in part, but can you connect the S7 with MHL HDMI cable to your TV, as I use it to play games with sixaxis PS4 controller and it is important to me to have that feature too!
  • Good review, especially for an existing GS6 owner like me. The S7 seems like a refinement over the S6 in many ways, but I don't see anything compelling enough to justify an upgrade. Better battery life was tempting, but it doesn't sound like it's significantly better in real-world usage. And to be honest, battery life on the S6 isn't an issue for me 90% of the time. I'm surprised the camera results were a little disappointing given the changes here. Perhaps Samsung needs to refine the image processing software. But in any event, it doesn't sound like a definitive improvement. And I'd prefer a 64GB internal storage option. That's what I have on my S6, and I have no interest in downgrading to 32GB plus MicroSD.
  • "The best galaxy to date"... I would hope so, as it would be pretty damn pointless to release one that's not as good as last year's model...." The best version yet" aka lazy writing at its finest... Posted via the Android Central App
  • Now.... Can someone by pass the bootloader and get some roming going on this thing so I can consider it.... Posted via the Android Central App
  • Seems like to me they went backwards with the S7. If you already have an S6 its not worth an upgrade. Hoping for much better with the Note 6 over my Note 5 and not just improved internal hardware.
  • Huh?? The software was improved in every way from the gs6 it's even better the note 5 is know cause I have one. Even the hardware is better the fill in the hand is so much better. Hey if you like your n5 I say keep it ...but to say they went backwards. .I'd say that's not true Posted via the Android Central App
  • Honestly, I don't think Android users have had real issues with the hardware for a while now. The gripe(s) of the moment are mostly related to software, updates and support. Posted via the Android Central App
  • True story...
  • Just to let you guys know that this phone will get Android N in 5 plus months
  • When they release N in November
  • The chromatic aberration on these photos is ridiculous...
  • The S7 is good. However, I was sorry that the IR remote feature had been deleted.
  • samsung's hardware is good ..actually excellent ..but ...their hardware just pushes me away
  • Love my new S7, only issue at this stage is I have problems logging into some sites (including this one). (I'm typing this on the S6). I put in correct passwords and it just sits there and goes nowhere.. Any suggestions?
  • Quantum dot displays are as good as amoled displays, they produce better colors. Search comparisons, they're basically equal & better than oled. Imo it's more accurate colors, higher ppi screen & extremely bright screen are where it beats the amoled screens.
  • It seems to me a fabulous mobile processor, RAM and ROM are very powerful and the design makes it unique!
  • I'll wait for this to drop $150 or so in the next 3 months or so before I consider biting the bullet
  • The G7 was my first Samsung phone - and I would not have purchased if I had known (or read in reviews) that you cannot permanently disable the driving mode. While you can turn if off, once it is near your bluetooth the driving mode comes on automatically. You have to turn if off manually every time you drive if you don't want it on. I don't need Samsung Big Brother informing people when I am driving - that is my decision and it shouldn't be forced on us. I contacted Samsung about this feature and they blamed it on Google.
  • ohhh... i love this phone.It has amazing features.Hope my all favorite apps like whats app,instagram,snapchat,cool browser,leo privacy app lock hide should run in this smoothly.
  • Everyone raves about how great the S7 is. Frankly, I think it's the biggest piece of junk ever developed. Only thing that is as bad is when Lollipop was pushed through on my S5. S5 and the original OS was great...lollipop screwed that up. Thought I'd give it one more try. S7 is completely worthless. Have to put it on the charger several times a day. Have had it on power saving mode but apps (and they are necessary apps) are screwed up AND, someone calls, leaves a voicemail, I might get it instantly, might be an hour later, might be several days later. That doesn't fly when most of one's business is handled mostly on cell phone, that doesn't work. Also, it is extremely sensitive to touch and moves apps around, put's them on home screen, totally frustrating. Got stung with lollipop and now this is a total train wreck. I'm about to send this piece of crap to Hillary Clinton's IT people to beat the living daylights out of it with a hammer!
  • My Galaxy S4 may retire for a four-year of use. S7 may a good choice.
  • It's flying on Nougat! well done Samsung, what a superb software update and display! we knew you could do it!
  • The display looks 2k, even with the resolution lowered to 720, HOLY MACKEREL!!!!!
  • Samsung pulled out all l the stops with this phone! Holy Mackerel, what a display!
  • Samsung pulled out all the stops, this time! holy Mackerel ! what a display!
  • ●▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ஜ۩GIVE IT FEW MINUTES۩ஜ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬● <a href="h"><strong>
    Bella . I see what you mean... Willie `s st0rry is unimaginable... on tuesday I bought a new Mitsubishi Evo after I been earnin $7881 this-past/5 weeks and also ten-k this past-month . this is really the coolest work I've ever done . I actually started 7-months ago and right away started making more than $77 p/h . navigate to this site hgfdfdtdrfujgyjmkghjkmghkhulhujljkil ....... http://centerpay70.com
  • Fabulous Phone, eSpecially I like the camera result it results like DSLR camera result.
    Now waiting for "Naught" updates in Galaxy S7 company updates from Verizon.
  • I am using this phone last 10 months, the phone is well designed, user friendly and perform well also. I dropped this phone couple of times and there is not a single scratch (I am using it even without screen guard). Battery charge lasts decent and fast charging is one of the best options in the phone. Only issue I faced is over heating of the phone (some time) otherwise I was happy with this phone until last week. Now I have one pink line cross the screen so I went to Samsung service center to get it fixed. As per technician its my mistake that I was keeping the phone in my pocket so it is not covered under warranty. The funny thing is he show me his phone also with same problem but I cannot laugh because I love this phone and spent $700+ on this phone so I try to get more info on the issue from internet. Surprisingly this is a major issue of this model. Then I searched for some pouches which I can use to hang my phone around my neck. The thing is you cannot trust Samsung because anything can happen to their phones after some time, so if you are going to buy s8 my advise will be wait one year or so to make sure no major issues reported then buy it.
  • Samsung's Super AMOLED displays have always been one of the highlights of its S-series smartphones.