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Samsung Galaxy S6 review: the iPhone 6s killer

The controversial new Samsung Galaxy S6 sheds its plastic construction, removable battery, expandable storage and environmental protection for slicker looks.
Samsung Galaxy S6: Learning a new design language
No two ways about it, the Samsung Galaxy S6 is a stunner, framed in cool-to-the-touch aluminium, and with a coloured Gorilla Glass 4 rear and front, it's a beautiful phone to behold. It's clad in Gorilla Glass 4 front and back, and the way it gleams and glistens in the light is quite entrancing. The S6 is available in "White Pearl", "Gold Platinum" and "Blue Topaz", but we think it looks best in "Black Sapphire", which you see pictured here.
As you'd expect from a modern smartphone, the S6 is extremely slim (6.8mm) and light (138g), and it feels surprisingly compact in the hand, especially considering there's a 5.1in display up front.
In our view, the S6 delivers the perfect compromise between screen size and one-handed comfort – in fact, it's slightly smaller overall than the Samsung Galaxy S5 – and it combines that with impressive build quality and attention to detail. Even the volume, power and home buttons feel like they've been upgraded: everything about this phone feels perfectly on point.
There are some downsides to the design, however. First, in order to produce such a gorgeous work of art, the removable rear panel, replaceable battery and microSD slot for storage expansion have been consigned to the dustbin.
Second, neither the S6 nor the S6 Edge has an IP rating, so they're not not water and dust resistant like last year's Samsung Galaxy S5 was.
And third, the glass rear of the phones picks up fingerprints like they're going out of fashion. It's easy to clean, but if you own one of these phones, you're going to be spending a lot of your time wiping it on your jeans or the hem of your T-shirt to keep it spotless.
Samsung Galaxy S6: Specifications
The fact that Samsung has gone with its in-house Exynos processor for all global versions of the Galaxy S6 signals the company's growing confidence in its ability to compete with top-tier technology firms such as Qualcomm. The Exynos 7420 SoC has four 1.5GHz ARM Cortex A53 cores and four 2.1GHz Cortex A57 cores, allowing the phone to strike a balance between performance and power consumption for all kinds of tasks. There's 3GB of RAM, which is standard for top-end phones now.
With no microSD card slot, Samsung has made the Galaxy S6 available in multiple storage configurations. The strategy and pricing follow Apple's precedents, but the base model comes with 32GB rather than 16GB, which seems like a direct shot across the bow.
Like last year's Galaxy S5, the physical Home button has an integrated fingerprint sensor, but now you don't have to swipe your finger across it - a simple touch will do. The heart rate sensor on the rear is also still around. We found the one on the Galaxy S5 gimmicky and ultimately forgettable. This one is positioned to one side of the camera hump, making less likely that regular usage will become a habit.
OS: Android Lollipop with TouchWiz user interface
16 megapixel camera with LED flash, f1.9, autofocus, optical image stabilisation, digital zoom, UHD 4K video recording
5 megapixel front camera with 1080p HD video recording
Display: Super AMOLED, 16 million colours, 1440 x 2560 pixels (5.1 inches) capacitive touchscreen
Music player
Integrated handsfree speaker
S-Voice natural language commands and dictation
GPS, Glonass, Beidou positioning
Messaging: SMS, MMS, instant messaging, email
Processor: Quad-core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53 & quad-core 2.1 GHz Cortex-A57
Memory: 32GB, 64GB or 128GB, plus 3GB RAM
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, Bluetooth, micro USB, 3.5mm audio jack, NFC, infrared, MHL, ANT+
Sensors: Gesture Sensor, Fingerprint Sensor, Heart Rate Sensor, Hall Sensor, Accelerometer, Geomagnetic Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Light Sensor, Barometer, Proximity Sensor
LTE 4G, HSPA+, EDGE / GPRS
Size: 143 x 70.5 x 6.8 mm
Weight: 138g
Battery: 2550mAh battery with wireless charging
Read more: vietreader.com/tech/page,2,270-samsung-galaxy-s6-review-the-iphone-6s-killer.html

I think you forgot to mention why is it "the iPhone 6s killer". I think you need to compare them meaning you do need to mention about the iphonr

Not to be a party pooper but, this phone came out months ago. We have had the device for a months. A review now is kinda pointless..
Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

This review is considered old. The latest devices in the market boast 4GB RAM and 4K display. The S6 was a great phone at its prime but it has now lost its footing to the Note 5 and other more powerful phones out there. While the camera is a game changer, most of the things you find on it can be found on other phones as well. Furthermore, most developers are put off by the Exynos processor as there is no way to develop custom ROMs for phones with Exynos processor without proper documentation from Samsung.

Also don't forget to mention that the STOCK Galaxy S6 multi-tasking and UI smoothness is... well, not good.

Thread closed.
Please use the existing discussion thread here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s6/general/s6-user-reviews-opinions-t3068540
Thank you.
The_Merovingian
Forum Moderator

Watch the Galaxy S7 destroy the iPhone 6S in a low light camera shoot out [VIDEO]

While some could argue that there isn’t a huge difference between the newly announced Samsung Galaxy S7 and its older sibling — last year’s Galaxy S6 — it’s hard to argue that the latest iteration in Samsung’s Galaxy S lineup didn’t receive a significant upgrade in the camera department. Tackling the 2 biggest challenges modern smartphone cameras face, Samsung was able to build a camera that, not only takes a better photo in low light, but can focus faster in these normally challenging situations as well.
They did this by using a larger f1.7 aperture lens and something they’re calling a “Dual Pixel” system. With a new Sony IMX260 camera sensor that captures more light by using larger 1.4μm pixels (at the cost of less megapixels), Samsung says the Galaxy S7 is capable of capturing 95% more light than the IMX240 sensor found in the Galaxy S6. The Galaxy S7 camera also uses all of the 12 million pixels to act as focus pixels, a feature you typically only find in full-sized DSLRs (phase detection auto focus). The end result is faster, more accurate auto-focus — 3 times faster than on the Galaxy S6 — and exceptional low light picture quality
Still don’t believe the hype? Located in Samsung’s huge MWC 2016 booth, the Korean manufacturer showcased the new low light capabilities of the Galaxy S7 by allowing us to see it for ourselves. They did this in a dark room that was so dimly lit, we had trouble seeing anything in there with our own eyes. See what happens when the Samsung Galaxy S7 goes up against last year’s Galaxy S6, and the Apple iPhone 6S in a lighting situation you’d have to be crazy to even attempt to shoot with a smartphone. We think the results speak for themselves.

Androidynamic said:
While some could argue that there isn’t a huge difference between the newly announced Samsung Galaxy S7 and its older sibling — last year’s Galaxy S6 — it’s hard to argue that the latest iteration in Samsung’s Galaxy S lineup didn’t receive a significant upgrade in the camera department. Tackling the 2 biggest challenges modern smartphone cameras face, Samsung was able to build a camera that, not only takes a better photo in low light, but can focus faster in these normally challenging situations as well.
They did this by using a larger f1.7 aperture lens and something they’re calling a “Dual Pixel” system. With a new Sony IMX260 camera sensor that captures more light by using larger 1.4μm pixels (at the cost of less megapixels), Samsung says the Galaxy S7 is capable of capturing 95% more light than the IMX240 sensor found in the Galaxy S6. The Galaxy S7 camera also uses all of the 12 million pixels to act as focus pixels, a feature you typically only find in full-sized DSLRs (phase detection auto focus). The end result is faster, more accurate auto-focus — 3 times faster than on the Galaxy S6 — and exceptional low light picture quality
Still don’t believe the hype? Located in Samsung’s huge MWC 2016 booth, the Korean manufacturer showcased the new low light capabilities of the Galaxy S7 by allowing us to see it for ourselves. They did this in a dark room that was so dimly lit, we had trouble seeing anything in there with our own eyes. See what happens when the Samsung Galaxy S7 goes up against last year’s Galaxy S6, and the Apple iPhone 6S in a lighting situation you’d have to be crazy to even attempt to shoot with a smartphone. We think the results speak for themselves.
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There is already a camera thread. It's better to post there.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s7/how-to/galaxy-s7-camera-thread-t3316316

Pierre118 said:
There is already a camera thread. It's better to post there.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s7/how-to/galaxy-s7-camera-thread-t3316316
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Click to collapse
Did you see How is much better ??!!!

Galaxy S7 Camera thread
You can go here for all S7 camera discussion.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s7/how-to/galaxy-s7-camera-thread-t3316316
Thanks,
Bajanman

Galaxy S5 to S7 (SM-G930F): An Upgrade or Really... Downgrade?

So I got myself a Galaxy S7 (SM-G930F) to replace my almost 2 year old Galaxy S5. After a few days of usage, here is what I think.
What I like on S7 compared to S5:
- much more responsive interface and overall experience, UI feels silk-smooth, the phone is properly fast
- all glassy (front and back) and beautiful, feels expensive (judging from posts on this forum, a very important feature for some users ;])
But that's about all to like. And this is what I dislike about it:
- While glass back of S7 looks very nice, it is much more slippery than plastic back of Galaxy S5. It is so slippery, that sometimes it is scary just to take it out of the pocket. So while I never needed a case with my S5, I may need it with S7
- No IR blaster. No idea why Samsung ditched such useful feature (LG G5 has it). It is very small and exists in waterproof S5, so space and waterproof-ness should not be a problem. And it is really useful, because you can skip renting remotes for TV and airco units in the hotels, if you already have IR blaster on your phone. So, Samsung, why to remove a useful feature which is also fun and helps to save money?
- No removable battery. This is not a very big issue for me, since I rarely needed extra battery on my S5, but some people (especially those traveling) are relying on it. Definitely nice to have in a phone. However, it may be that having non-removable battery helped to achieve IP68 dust/water-proof rating compared to IP67 on S5.
- Only 32 GB version at launch. Keeping in mind that Samsung gives away Samsung Gear VR virtual reality headset with all S7 pre-orders (and VR demos/games take lots of space), 32GB suddenly does not seem quite a lot.
- Finally (and this annoys me most, since I am living in a place where winter is something that happens every year), for some unfathomable reason Samsung removed "Touch Sensivity" option from the ROM, which allows to operate the phone with the gloves on. This is just a software feature (since the touchscreens are crazy sensitive these days anyway) and it doesn't cost anything for Samsung to keep it in the phone. Nevertheless, on a new Galaxy S7 it is nowhere to be found. Samsung, are you listening - what the hell??? Now we can only hope someone (maybe even from XDA developers) will add this feature back as a standalone program/xposed framework module/etc.
There is one more problem - there is still no root for SM-G930F, at least not yet, but hopefully Chainfire will soon get his hands on it. So overall, even if the phone is faster and smoother, compared to Galaxy S5, it feels more like downgrade than the upgrade...
Best,
satanxda

One of the primary reasons as for why Samsung went for the complete glass redesign on the S6 (and later the S7) were the lackluster sales of the S5 as compared to the S4, the best selling android phone of all time. According to a list on wikipedia the S5 sold approximately 11 million units, while it's predecessor landed at an impressive 80 million. This probably wasn't the only reason for the design change though, as Samsung have been going after Apple's marketshare aggresively in the past two releases.
The removable battery and IR blaster were most likely removed because there were too few people using them.
I agree completely on the last two points though. It's odd if they removed the touch sensitivity thing, but there might be a technical reason behind it.

i just upgraded from the s5 to the s7 as well. I agree the back s5 felt a lot better in hands. I hate using a case, it defeats the purpose of making the phone so thin. I also didnt realize that there is no IR blaster until i read your post. whats move fun than getting drunk in bar and changing the tv channels or turning up or down the music

So the better camera, bigger battery, higher res screen, no ugly waterproof flaps you don't like? You're right it really is a downgrade, but only in your eyes.

Lol

Last year "No expandable storage! Screw you Samsung"
gives expandable storage
This year "Only 32GB's? Screw you Samsung!"
samsung cry cry

peachpuff said:
So the better camera, bigger battery, higher res screen, no ugly waterproof flaps you don't like? You're right it really is a downgrade, but only in your eyes.
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Don't get it wrong - this post is not about the inevitable progress in CPU, screen and camera areas. It is about Samsung killing useful features for no reason.
P. S. You loose 4 Megapixels for camera as well with S7, so it may not be a camera upgrade in all ways ;] And the bigger battery only compensates for more pixels on the screen.

satanxda said:
Don't get it wrong - this post is not about the inevitable progress in CPU, screen and camera areas. It is about Samsung killing useful features for no reason.
P. S. You loose 4 Megapixels for camera as well with S7, so it may not be a camera upgrade in all ways ;] And the bigger battery only compensates for more pixels on the screen.
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Click to collapse
Uhh no. Megapixels do not make a quality camera. That's like saying your S5 would be an "upgrade" over some DSLRs. The reason some of the features were removed is just that they aren't practical. Sure, the IR blaster is cool, but I played with it once and never used it again. I'd imagine that's how 95% of the people who buy the phone are.
32gb internal memory is not a problem when you have 200gb expandable storage.
Removable battery is a non issue when you have both QC2.0 wired charging and fast wireless charging. If you're that concerned, buy a $20 power bank and charge your phone 3+ times on a single charge.

I went from an S5 to the S7 too. Expandable storage is a must. Hands down it's an upgrade. Yeah, I was bummed there was no IR blaster but then after setting it up on my S4 and S5 later I found I never used it. Wireless charging is built in and on the S5 you had to add it on and if you wanted a case after going wireless charging on the S5 you were limited. Wife heard the S7 didn't have that flap on the USB port and immediately said order me one. Granted root is not available yet but how soon after the S5 came out did it get root? Themes built in........ I can go on and on and on.

Things I don't like compared to my S4:
No removable battery - this I think I can live with without much angst, although I'd prefer removable
Glass back - slippery and fragile, might force me to use a case, which adds bulk that I do not like and have never needed with any phone. I really don't care at all what it looks like
Size and weight - about same width and thickness, but it's unnecessarily tall, and it's substantially heavier, which is a negative and will be an even bigger negative if I have to use a case
Otherwise, it's a pretty sizable upgrade in every other way. 32GB - hopefully there will be a 64GB or 128GB variant that will fully work on T-Mobile (WiFi calling is still an important feature to me), although it is a step up from the 16GB that I'm used to, and I can plunk in my 128GB SD.
I'm going to wait for prices to drop a bit, for Samsung to push out an update or two, and see how root/ROMs shake out.

satanxda said:
Don't get it wrong - this post is not about the inevitable progress in CPU, screen and camera areas. It is about Samsung killing useful features for no reason.
P. S. You loose 4 Megapixels for camera as well with S7, so it may not be a camera upgrade in all ways ;] And the bigger battery only compensates for more pixels on the screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On paper, the Galaxy S7 camera has lower specs: 12 MP on the back (compared with the S6 16 MP) and 5 MP on the front. While the new camera may produce a lower number of pixels, it makes up for this with dual-pixel technology; a feature that promises an increase in image clarity despite the lower pixel numbers.
The S7's camera focuses up to four times faster than the S6's. The camera's aperture is also lower, at f / 1.7, which means better low-light performance. Together, these enhancements mean that the Galaxy S7 focuses up to four times faster in low-light conditions and twice as fast in daylight.

TonyStark said:
On paper, the Galaxy S7 camera has lower specs: 12 MP on the back (compared with the S6 16 MP) and 5 MP on the front. While the new camera may produce a lower number of pixels, it makes up for this with dual-pixel technology; a feature that promises an increase in image clarity despite the lower pixel numbers.
The S7's camera focuses up to four times faster than the S6's. The camera's aperture is also lower, at f / 1.7, which means better low-light performance. Together, these enhancements mean that the Galaxy S7 focuses up to four times faster in low-light conditions and twice as fast in daylight.
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Click to collapse
Well, you said it - faster focus in exchange for a loss of 4 Megapixels. Less megapixels is not necessary a bad thing if the pixels are bigger (this way you get less noise), but it is still 4 Megapixels less ;] (which matters since there is no optical zoom in the phone, so zooming digitally means cropping your photo)

satanxda said:
Samsung removed "Touch Sensivity" option from the ROM, which allows to operate the phone with the gloves on. This is just a software feature (since the touchscreens are crazy sensitive these days anyway) and it doesn't cost anything for Samsung to keep it in the phone. Nevertheless, on a new Galaxy S7 it is nowhere to be found. Samsung, are you listening - what the hell???
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Thank you for sharing this deal breaking piece of information, looks like I'm stuck with my S5. It's frustrating that Samsung never really "gets it". They can't compete with Apple on design aesthetics, they can't compete with Nexus on Android integration. We buy Samsung phones because they have features that other manufacturers overlook. I love my S5 because it's better than my S2. I would love the S7 if it was better than the S5, but it's not. Removing valuable features keeps people from upgrading. If you're correct about this being a software feature, there is hope, but I'm guessing it's hardware.
32 GB Memory with no 64 GB Option = Unforgivable
Loss Of IR Blaster = Not a deal breaker for me, but I understand why this will piss a lot of people off.
Loss Of FM Radio = Could care less.
Loss Of Removable battery = Get over it, fast charging and portable chargers are perfectly acceptable solutions for me.
No Root = I used to care about this, but it bothers me less and less with each new version of Android. I just don't have the time to invest in the complications of rooting anymore. Being on Verizon just makes this worse.
No USB 3 = Bummer, doesn't make sense to remove it.
I'm headed to the Verizon store with my motorcycle gloves to see what happens. If there's a complete loss of touchscreen functionality, I'll probably just keep going with my S5.

i bought the same phone today and it shows signal without putting the sim on.//
how to remove this??

LKS007 said:
i bought the same phone today and it shows signal without putting the sim on.//
how to remove this??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think you can remove it - it's for emergency calls

The S7 camera kicks butt, that's coming from someone who use the Canon 5D3 regularly with 35L II, 85L II, 100L 2.8 IS macro, and 70-200L 2.8 IS II lens. I would gladly take lower aperture and give up few megapixel, hell...if S7 came with f/1.4 lens I wouldn't even mind going down to 6~8MP. You shouldn't use your phone to make poster or big prints to hang on your wall so anything more than 8MP on a phone camera is just gimmicky. LOL

ben805 said:
The S7 camera kicks butt, that's coming from someone who use the Canon 5D3 regularly with 35L II, 85L II, 100L 2.8 IS macro, and 70-200L 2.8 IS II lens. I would gladly take lower aperture and give up few megapixel, hell...if S7 came with f/1.4 lens I wouldn't even mind going down to 6~8MP. You shouldn't use your phone to make poster or big prints to hang on your wall so anything more than 8MP on a phone camera is just gimmicky. LOL
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I agree. I have my self a Canon 6D with high end lenses. The S7 photo quality is really impressive for such a small piece of hardware. Even with less Mpx, the sharpness is way better than with the S6, and the low light photos are impressives. And you can get the Raw. Photographers that opened the RAW files in lightroom are generally impressed by the overall quality of this phone. Hell, I'm finally happy to be able not to bring my DSLR for every situation I might take a photo.
I compared my old S4, my wife S6, and my workplace iphone 6S, believe me, the S7 is the only one that can actually be compared to compact camera

So the s7 camera is a beast? Im an android fan and i admit that in the past apple had the best mobile cameras. The note 3 and 4 had great cameras as well. I think android surpassed apple in the mobile camera area.

I upgraded from S5 also and only feature i really miss is IR.

Ok so the only feature I miss is an unlocked bootloader. I miss my root

HTC 10 or S7

Hi everyone ,
I thought of getting the s7 edge but the 10 was pretty impressive. Which should I go for ? I flash Roms a lot and will definitely root it. I will be getting it unlocked for sure.

I had the HTC ONE M8. My contract was up this year. I went for the S7 EDGE and aside from missing the IR blaster, I don't regret it. However the lack of decent tempered glass screen protectors for the S7E is irritating.
That said, if the Edge model did not exist and the choice was between regular S7 and HTC 10, I would have stuck with HTC. The Edge uniqueness pipped it for me. I actually use the Edge UI quite a bit.
FYI some more background, I left Samsung years ago and switched to HTC for two reasons 1) fed up with TouchWiz and bloat ware 2) plastic materials. Something I felt HTC were addressing with their Sense and metal materials. I've gone full circle again. TouchWiz is less bloated now and actually enjoyable to use. And the hardware feels premium.
Sent from my SM-G935F using XDA-Developers mobile app

Are you getting the international S7? Because AFAIK, The US models don't support unlocking/root... so that's a big negative. Also, I never had a good experience using an international Note 5 on T-Mobile USA's network (if you're US based).
Each phone has pro's and cons. The S7 is certainly more polished right now, but HTC has been pushing updates daily to fix issues. Performance should ideally be faster on the HTC just because it is less bloated. I really appreciate HTC embracing stock Android as much as possible. I'll give you a quick rundown of my opinion on the devices... I'm having such a hard time deciding, I actually just ordered both and plan on using them back and forth to hopefully decide which I will use until the next Nexus or Note 6.
S7E:
+Insanely fast autofocus... camera is reliable right now. Better manual controls
+Great sunlight brightness
+Waterproof
+OLED screen
+Unique design
+Larger screen
+Huge battery
+Better slow motion video, and 60 FPS video
+Wireless charging
+UFS storage speeds
-micro-USB, v2.0
-TouchWiz
-No root capability for US models yet?
-Fingerprint reader is slower and must press power button
-Curved edges can distort colors (turn blue/green) on white browsing screens
HTC 10:
+Brighter screen in manual brightness
+High fidelity speakers and headphone jack, DAC/amps. High-res audio recording
+Lighter OS
+Better looking display whites
+Type C USB, v3.1
+Unlocked bootloader
+Better front and rear camera hardware (bigger pixels, OIS on front - software needs more polishing)
+$599 after discount code
-eMMC storage speeds
-Smaller display
-Only splash resilient
-Small battery for thickness
-No sunlight brightness boost mode
-LCD contrast (very good, but still nowhere near OLED)
If the 10 were OLED and 5.5", it would have been the perfect phone...

I love HTC, but now, i would pick the S7 edge.

Htc 10 is a good device. The S7Edge is a great device. You pretty much get the best components on the market. Htc 10 asks way too high of a price for what it offers, using emmc storage, bad optics for the camera, OIS not so good either, display is not that good unless you get a specific brand (basically a lottery), it gets too hot too fast ( search htc 10 forums)
The only reason you might wanna consider the 10 is maybe audio, not that its that much better than the S7Edge exynos. Samsung pretty much created the best device money can get to date.

FalconFX said:
Htc 10 is a good device. The S7Edge is a great device. You pretty much get the best components on the market. Htc 10 asks way too high of a price for what it offers, using emmc storage, bad optics for the camera, OIS not so good either, display is not that good unless you get a specific brand (basically a lottery), it gets too hot too fast ( search htc 10 forums)
The only reason you might wanna consider the 10 is maybe audio, not that its that much better than the S7Edge exynos. Samsung pretty much created the best device money can get to date.
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You're down talking the phone way more than it deserves. Have you even used it yet to back up those claims?
The latest eMMC is not THAT much worse than UFS. Most people are likely to not even notice a difference because once things are loaded in the RAM, it's moot.
How does it have bad optics? LOL. It uses the same sensor as the 6P which BEATS the S7E in plenty of low light tests due to superior HDR processing. The HTC with a bigger aperture AND OIS is a recipe for perfection if HTC can get the camera software right, which so far has gotten better, but is not where it needs to be. And how is the OIS bad?
I haven't seen much complaining about the panels. Apparently the more rare Sharp panels don't have an issue in landscape with polarized sunglasses and may have less visible tinting at extreme angles. But from what I saw in a YouTube video, after 2 weeks, the pink tint was practically gone at extreme angles hinting to it being an adhesive issue in the LCD which will clear up after a little bit of use.
Don't know anything about the heat actually being an issue. Apparently people feel the heat easily - it is an aluminum phone, so maybe it's just better at dissipating it, but I would bet that the S7E is less prone to thermal throttling with its vapor heat pipe. Not an issue for me because I never game on my phone.

Nitemare3219 said:
You're down talking the phone way more than it deserves. Have you even used it yet to back up those claims?
The latest eMMC is not THAT much worse than UFS. Most people are likely to not even notice a difference because once things are loaded in the RAM, it's moot.
How does it have bad optics? LOL. It uses the same sensor as the 6P which BEATS the S7E in plenty of low light tests due to superior HDR processing. The HTC with a bigger aperture AND OIS is a recipe for perfection if HTC can get the camera software right, which so far has gotten better, but is not where it needs to be. And how is the OIS bad?
I haven't seen much complaining about the panels. Apparently the more rare Sharp panels don't have an issue in landscape with polarized sunglasses and may have less visible tinting at extreme angles. But from what I saw in a YouTube video, after 2 weeks, the pink tint was practically gone at extreme angles hinting to it being an adhesive issue in the LCD which will clear up after a little bit of use.
Don't know anything about the heat actually being an issue. Apparently people feel the heat easily - it is an aluminum phone, so maybe it's just better at dissipating it, but I would bet that the S7E is less prone to thermal throttling with its vapor heat pipe. Not an issue for me because I never game on my phone.
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Just the fact that you said that HTC has bigger aperture means you know s***t about cameras, The smaller the number the wider the aperture, 1.7 is better than 1.8. here is a comparison :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFww3-Ne3Fk
When i said optics i meant the lenses, not the sensor, but considering how you dont know which aperture size is better, there is no reason to waste my time on photography 101.
The S7 is the fastest device of the year (exynos), in day to day usage & in heavy tasks.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvytFwkI8BA
As i said, the 10 is a good device, but not a great one, for the price they are asking for it, they are delivering the basic things, which every device this year does very well, and arguably the S7 excels not only at the basics, but goes beyond that with extras, (Wireless charging, heat pipe, IP68, etc).

FalconFX said:
Just the fact that you said that HTC has bigger aperture means you know s***t about cameras, The smaller the number the wider the aperture, 1.7 is better than 1.8. here is a comparison :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFww3-Ne3Fk
When i said optics i meant the lenses, not the sensor, but considering how you dont know which aperture size is better, there is no reason to waste my time on photography 101.
The S7 is the fastest device of the year (exynos), in day to day usage & in heavy tasks.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvytFwkI8BA
As i said, the 10 is a good device, but not a great one, for the price they are asking for it, they are delivering the basic things, which every device this year does very well, and arguably the S7 excels not only at the basics, but goes beyond that with extras, (Wireless charging, heat pipe, IP68, etc).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My comment of having a bigger aperture was directed towards it being larger than the 6P, not the S7E. I am well aware that the S7E has a larger aperture, but the 10 has larger pixels. I'm not sure which would equate to taking in more light, but considering the 6P has been capable of producing better shots than the S7E in many scenarios at night, the 10 should be even more capable with its larger aperture (than the 6P).
Exynos is not available here in the US unless you get the international version, which is not worth it considering the issues that may arise trying to use it on US carriers based on my experience with an international Note5 on T-Mobile USA's network. If OP is outside of the US, then that is cetainly something to consider.
The S7 has its additional features, as does the 10. The heat pipe is only relevant if you heavily use the device. IP68 is cool for sure, but I don't know how well I'm warming up to the idea of getting the phone wet regularly. Wireless charging is pointless because it is a lot slower than wired, and you can't really use the phone easily when it's charging like that. The 10 has FAR superior audio (at least vs the SD 820 variant), has a larger aperture for the front camera along with OIS, more refined speaker audio, higher manual brightness, USB Type C v3.1, is less bloated, and - this is a big one for me - doesn't require you to hit a home button for fingerprint unlock OR to go home. I don't know why, but I hate pushing down on a button, especially to unlock the device.
I'm not arguing that the S7 isn't a great device. That's why I have ordered them both to see which suits me best. I'm just saying that calling the 10 only a "good" phone is a bit unwarranted at this point. HTC put a lot of effort in the right places and left it unlocked from the start, and has pushed updates daily since it launched. Samsung hasn't really innovated much like they could have. Last year's Note5 was a huge showcase of that... nothing new other than the updated design.

HTC 10 I liked best the camera.

Nitemare3219 said:
My comment of having a bigger aperture was directed towards it being larger than the 6P, not the S7E. I am well aware that the S7E has a larger aperture, but the 10 has larger pixels. I'm not sure which would equate to taking in more light, but considering the 6P has been capable of producing better shots than the S7E in many scenarios at night, the 10 should be even more capable with its larger aperture (than the 6P).
Exynos is not available here in the US unless you get the international version, which is not worth it considering the issues that may arise trying to use it on US carriers based on my experience with an international Note5 on T-Mobile USA's network. If OP is outside of the US, then that is cetainly something to consider.
The S7 has its additional features, as does the 10. The heat pipe is only relevant if you heavily use the device. IP68 is cool for sure, but I don't know how well I'm warming up to the idea of getting the phone wet regularly. Wireless charging is pointless because it is a lot slower than wired, and you can't really use the phone easily when it's charging like that. The 10 has FAR superior audio (at least vs the SD 820 variant), has a larger aperture for the front camera along with OIS, more refined speaker audio, higher manual brightness, USB Type C v3.1, is less bloated, and - this is a big one for me - doesn't require you to hit a home button for fingerprint unlock OR to go home. I don't know why, but I hate pushing down on a button, especially to unlock the device.
I'm not arguing that the S7 isn't a great device. That's why I have ordered them both to see which suits me best. I'm just saying that calling the 10 only a "good" phone is a bit unwarranted at this point. HTC put a lot of effort in the right places and left it unlocked from the start, and has pushed updates daily since it launched. Samsung hasn't really innovated much like they could have. Last year's Note5 was a huge showcase of that... nothing new other than the updated design.
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I dont know whats so amazing about higher manual brightness being higher, i keep mine on auto, and outdoors i can see the screen no problem, the 10 has way worst outdoor visibility.
Phones are getting stagnant. The S7Edge is the farthest a device can get as a whole package. Next year is where innovation should be made. Any device that you buy this year will have no problem bolding up beyond 2 yrs. I feel like sammy did the right thing with the s7, its improved in every possible aspect. As i said, the htc 10 is a good device compared to this year's flagships, but its the a great upgrade from the M9 and M8.
The htc 10 would be a great phone if priced well. 500$ is the best price for it. It doesnt offer much from the 6p, so it should be priced against it.

I have one more T-Mobile jump until it resets in June. Then I get 3 more upgrades for the year. I'm going to look at the HTC 10 but I don't know if I'll take the leap. Battery life is most important to me and I don't think the 10 will come close to the 8 hours SOT I'm getting with my S7E.
Sent from my SM-G935T using Tapatalk

Nitemare3219 said:
Are you getting the international S7? Because AFAIK, The US models don't support unlocking/root... so that's a big negative. Also, I never had a good experience using an international Note 5 on T-Mobile USA's network (if you're US based).
Each phone has pro's and cons. The S7 is certainly more polished right now, but HTC has been pushing updates daily to fix issues. Performance should ideally be faster on the HTC just because it is less bloated. I really appreciate HTC embracing stock Android as much as possible. I'll give you a quick rundown of my opinion on the devices... I'm having such a hard time deciding, I actually just ordered both and plan on using them back and forth to hopefully decide which I will use until the next Nexus or Note 6.
S7E:
+Insanely fast autofocus... camera is reliable right now. Better manual controls
+Great sunlight brightness
+Waterproof
+OLED screen
+Unique design
+Larger screen
+Huge battery
+Better slow motion video, and 60 FPS video
+Wireless charging
+UFS storage speeds
-micro-USB, v2.0
-TouchWiz
-No root capability for US models yet?
-Fingerprint reader is slower and must press power button
-Curved edges can distort colors (turn blue/green) on white browsing screens
HTC 10:
+Brighter screen in manual brightness
+High fidelity speakers and headphone jack, DAC/amps. High-res audio recording
+Lighter OS
+Better looking display whites
+Type C USB, v3.1
+Unlocked bootloader
+Better front and rear camera hardware (bigger pixels, OIS on front - software needs more polishing)
+$599 after discount code
-eMMC storage speeds
-Smaller display
-Only splash resilient
-Small battery for thickness
-No sunlight brightness boost mode
-LCD contrast (very good, but still nowhere near OLED)
If the 10 were OLED and 5.5", it would have been the perfect phone...
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Thanks a lot for the comparison. It's really helpful. I'll just get the S7 and the 10 at a go. I'll return either one. BTW I live outside the States.
And thanks, everyone for your thoughts.

Nitemare3219 said:
Are you getting the international S7? Because AFAIK, The US models don't support unlocking/root... so that's a big negative. Also, I never had a good experience using an international Note 5 on T-Mobile USA's network (if you're US based).
Each phone has pro's and cons. The S7 is certainly more polished right now, but HTC has been pushing updates daily to fix issues. Performance should ideally be faster on the HTC just because it is less bloated. I really appreciate HTC embracing stock Android as much as possible. I'll give you a quick rundown of my opinion on the devices... I'm having such a hard time deciding, I actually just ordered both and plan on using them back and forth to hopefully decide which I will use until the next Nexus or Note 6.
S7E:
+Insanely fast autofocus... camera is reliable right now. Better manual controls
+Great sunlight brightness
+Waterproof
+OLED screen
+Unique design
+Larger screen
+Huge battery
+Better slow motion video, and 60 FPS video
+Wireless charging
+UFS storage speeds
-micro-USB, v2.0
-TouchWiz
-No root capability for US models yet?
-Fingerprint reader is slower and must press power button
-Curved edges can distort colors (turn blue/green) on white browsing screens.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
100% incorrect. When the phone is in sleep you simply need to press the home button down with a finger/thumb that's been setup and the phone will unlock. The physical pressing of the home button wakes the device then the fingerprint is immediately read. You don't even need to release the button. The power button on the side at no point needs to be touched.

Beefheart said:
100% incorrect. When the phone is in sleep you simply need to press the home button down with a finger/thumb that's been setup and the phone will unlock. The physical pressing of the home button wakes the device then the fingerprint is immediately read. You don't even need to release the button. The power button on the side at no point needs to be touched.
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Sorry I used the wrong wording. I know you don't have to hit the power button - what I implied was you must hit the home button, physically push it down to wake the device for your fingerprint to be read. If Samsung would have found a way to avoid that requirement, the fingerprint sensor would be a lot more appreciable to me. I dislike the physical home button all together truthfully. I strongly prefer the 10's home button.
I've been using the S7E for a few days now. The 10 has been sitting at home, and will likely be getting returned. It's a good phone in a lot of ways. Maybe even a great phone. But every other phone out there is the best at something. The 10 is best at almost nothing, but good/great at everything. Problem is, most of those phones that are the best at something are also good/great at everything else too.
My biggest complaint with the 10 is the display. It just sucks compared to OLED. It has crazy motion blur, low brightness below 75%, a pink tint to the entire screen even viewed straight on, and has lesser contrast (but very good contrast for LCD). That combined with the display being SMALL, makes it a loss for me. I just don't want to use it as much as I do the S7E or the 6P.
I was really excited about the audio. I was really excited about the camera. I was really excited about the build. It gets all of those things right. But so do the other two phones I mentioned for the most part (headphone audio isn't that good on the S7E, but it's not bad enough to make me not want to use it). With a 5.5" OLED display, the 10 would've been phone of the year in my book, no questions asked.

Considering other options in price range with better camera

Love this phone but after seeing low light comparisons with an ancient Galaxy s5 I was massively disappointed with the low light photographs, which is important to me (as well as overall camera quality). I've familiarized myself with the custom settings and they still don't provide the desired quality.
Considering a 1st gen Google Pixel or Samsung S7 (leaning to the pixel). What phones, including older phones, in a similar price range would be a good trade off?

I don't care about your complaining. Would it help that you compares G5 Plus to 4 years old phone? It makes you feel better? Don't do off topic and just compare phones in the right topic. It's annoying.

maruchandd said:
Love this phone but after seeing low light comparisons with an ancient Galaxy s5 I was massively disappointed with the low light photographs, which is important to me (as well as overall camera quality). I've familiarized myself with the custom settings and they still don't provide the desired quality.
Considering a 1st gen Google Pixel or Samsung S7 (leaning to the pixel). What phones, including older phones, in a similar price range would be a good trade off?
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Click to collapse
I have the Moto G5plus and I compared the shots to 3 other phones I have access to (not all mine). These are all $200 something.
1. iPhone SE - Out of all budget phones, this makes the best pictures in this price range , the reason I won't get it is because the screen size is just a no-go for me. But camera wise, it's top dog, maybe the Note 5 and the S7 would be beating on it (in $200 range)
2. Honor 7X (I owned this for 2 days and returned it, because it had some defects and I chose not to get another one) This makes great pictures IMO, makes better pics than any moto phone although still not as good as the iphone.
3. Moto ZPlay (1st gen) - Don't get this for camera, actually the G5Plus makes better pictures, the only reason it would look better, because of the AMOLED screen it has, but look at it on a PC or another phone and compare the pics, you'd realize that the G5plus made sharper pictures. The Zplay was a mid-ranger in 2016, don't know how the Z2Play is, but as far as I know it has the same exact camera as the G5plus. Moto uses good cameras, but they just can't get their software processing right.
4. Blackberry Priv. - Despite all the other shortcomings (heats up, not so great battery life) this makes really good pictures, has a curved, hres screen too.
5. iPhone 6S- Same camera as the SE. Again, the reason I don't consider it, is because I had it and I got spoiled by my Note 5 (which I broke and gone now) which was way better and the large screen made me hate my iphone screen.
6. Used Galaxy S7 (or edge, but it's $100 more) this has to be the best shooter if you can find one for $200 as a refurb or used. Same thing with the Galaxy Note 4 or 5. Unless of course you hate touchwiz.
7. If you can find a first gen Pixel, you gonna have a good camera. also LG G6 are going dirt cheap on ebay and it's a 2017 flagship. It has an awesome camera with secondary wide angle shot. As of right now I'm getting an LG G6 soon to replace my G5 Plus.
8. Sony experia - I don't know much about it, although people claiming to make as good or even better pics as the S7. Sony seem to be the primary maker of the best cams on most of smartphones so they won't wimp out on putting a really good one on their own smartphones.

maruchandd said:
Love this phone but after seeing low light comparisons with an ancient Galaxy s5 I was massively disappointed with the low light photographs, which is important to me (as well as overall camera quality). I've familiarized myself with the custom settings and they still don't provide the desired quality.
Considering a 1st gen Google Pixel or Samsung S7 (leaning to the pixel). What phones, including older phones, in a similar price range would be a good trade off?
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Click to collapse
Dude, this has the same imaging sensor as the S7 and Pixel, but it was held back by crappy (but fixable) software. There's no way in heck an S5 can compare once you've turned on Camera2 and run the Gcam HDR+ exposure. Out of camera the shots hang on my wall next to ones taken with my $3000+ pro DSLR, and editing the RAW images blows me away every time I try tweaking them in lightroom.
I call shenanigans. I want to see the examples the OP is talking about, or I lay claim that he is only comparing the crippled stock camera app.