Samsung has announced the Galaxy S7 and the Galaxy S7 Edge, its best smartphones to rival Apple’s iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus. These two latest Galaxy devices are an evolution of the previous-generation Galaxy s6 and S6 Edge. The new devices keep the display of its predecessors while fixing some of the annoyance of Galaxy S6 generation devices.
While the design remains almost identical to the last-generation devices, Samsung does have added some notable new features to its Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge devices such as IP68 water resistance and dust proofing, and support for an external microSD card through a hybrid SIM card tray to add up to 200GB additional storage.
For this generation of devices, Samsung has decided to go for an edged display for the 5.5-inch Galaxy S7 Edge, while the Galaxy S7 continues to boast a 5.1-inch Quad HD Super AMOLED display. The new devices can reach higher brightness levels, has the ability to remain always-on and show date/time and other related information. The cameras have been improved and yes, the camera bump is still there but let prominent than its predecessor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyohHyQl-kc
Always-On Display
While the display on the Galaxy S7 is the same found on the Galaxy S6 (5.1-inch) and the Galaxy S7 Edge comes with a 5.5-inch display, still the larger sibling is smaller in size when compared to Apple’s 5.5-inch iPhone 6s Plus, thanks to an edge-to-edge display which is curved on both sides.
One feature that Samsung is touting is the Always-On display, which displays a clock, calendar, or an image on the screen while consuming only 0.5 percent of the battery per hour. Te Always-On display shuts off itself when the device is inserted in the pocket, thanks to the built-in proximity sensor.
Better cameras with BRITECELL technology
Galaxy S7/Edge features improved cameras with a brighter f/1.7 aperture to let in 25% more light, changed sensor’s aspect ratio from wide 16:9 to 4:3, 4K video recording with optical image stabilization. Samsung claims that its new devices come with three times faster focus, thanks to the technology called BRITECELL, which is similar to Apple’s Focus Pixels.
It’s important to note that the camera resolution has decreased from 16MP in S6 to 12MP in galaxy S7 models. Samsung has done so to favor larger pixels size that lets in 56% more light, which dramatically boosts image quality in low light environment.
Faster hardware
Both of the new S7-series devices comes with improved internal hardware. Both devices run Android Marshmallow 6.0 with TouchWiz overlay and it is powered by Qualcomm’s 2.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 820 processor with 4GB of RAM. In some regions, the device will be powered with Samsung’s in-house built 2.4 Ghz oct-core Exynos chipset.
Wireless and faster charging
The new devices come with larger batteries, wireless charging tech, and faster charging as well. Samsung claims that latest battery setup will help leave the battery woes of Galaxy S6 generation in the past. The Galaxy S7 features a beastly 3,000 mAh battery vs Galaxy S6’s 2,550 mAh battery. And the larger Galaxy S7 Edge model has a 3,600 mAh battery vs the 2,600 mAh one in the Galaxy S6 Edge.
Vulcan API
Samsung has introduced its own variant of Apple’s Metal API named Vulcan API. This new API promises to deliver high-performance graphics experience with lower battery consumption.
Samsung Galaxy S7 / S7 Edge – Key Hardware Specs
Here are the key hardware specification for both latest Galaxy S7 devices:
| Galaxy S7 | Galaxy S7 Edge | |
|---|---|---|
| Display | 5.1-inch | 5.5-inchdual edge |
| Quad HD super AMOLED display | ||
| OS | Android 6.0, Marshmallow | |
| Camera | 12MP rear + 5MP front camera | |
| Storage | 32GB/64GB, microSD upto 200GB | |
| Battery | 3000 mAh | 3600 mAh |
| RAM | 4GB | |
| Chipset | Exynos 8890 Octa | Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 |
| Quad-core 2.3 GHz + Quad-core 1.6 GHz | Dual-core 2.15 GHz + Dual-core 1.6 GHz | |
| Water Resistance | IP68 certified – dust proof and water resistant over 1.5 meter and 30 minutes | |
| Colors | Black and Gold | Black, Gold and Silver |
You can watch Samsung’s Unpacked event on YouTube.
Availability
Samsung will begin accepting pre-orders for both the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge on Febraury 23 before the device hits four major carriers on March 11.
If you order a Gaaxy S7 device between February 23 and March 18, you’ll be treated with a free Gear VR headset along with a bundle of six games.
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