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Out with the old, in with the new. The Samsung Galaxy S7 is here to take over for the Samsung Galaxy S6. When a new device is announced we like to compare it to the old model. A lot of people have the Galaxy S6 right now, and there are all asking the same question: “is the Galaxy S7 worth the upgrade?” We won’t know the answer to that question for sure until we have more time with the device, but let’s start with specs.
Note: The Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge has the same exact specs as the Galaxy S7 except for two things. The display is a larger 5.5-inches, and the battery is 3600. Alternatively, last year’s Edge variant was identical to the Galaxy S6. Keep that in mind.
Design
Samsung didn’t make any major design changes in the Galaxy S7. It looks like a more rounded version of the Galaxy S6. It’s made from the same materials and has buttons in all the same spots. One thing you might notice is the camera doesn’t protrude out quite so far. Other than that, this is an evolution of the Galaxy S6 design. There’s nothing terribly exciting about it, but at least it’s not ugly.
Camera
One of the biggest surprises about the Galaxy S7 is that Samsung went from 16 to 12MP camera. Many people will complain about this just because 12 is a smaller number than 16, but megapixels are not the most important thing in a camera. The new camera makes up for with “dual-pixel” technology. Samsung promises the new camera will have an increase in image clarity despite the lower pixels. Low-light results should also be improved thanks to the f / 1.7 aperture.
Battery & Performance
Battery life and performance were issues for the Galaxy S6. The phone was blazing fast out of the box, but it slowed down dramatically over time. Battery life was never good. Samsung has attempted to fix both of those issues in the Galaxy S7. Powering the device is the speedy Qualcomm Snapdragon 820. It has felt amazing on every device we’ve used so far, and the S7 felt no different. The real test will come with extended use. The battery has been bumped up to 3000 mAh. We’d still like to see a bigger battery, but this should offer some improvement over the S6.
Extras
Here’s where the Galaxy S7 really shines. Samsung has once again included a microSD card slot. They ditched the slot in the Galaxy S6, which made a lot of people upset. Thankfully, the slot has returned. It supports microSD cards up to 200GB.
The other bonus feature is water resistance. This is something that has been reserved for the Galaxy Active line in the past. The Galaxy S7 is IP68 water and dust resistant. It can be completely submerged in 5 feet of water for up to 30 minutes. A dip in the pool or rain should be more than okay.
What do you think?
Did Samsung do enough to get your upgrade? The Galaxy S7 isn’t terribly exciting, but Samsung made important improvements. This looks like a refined and evolved version of the Galaxy S6, which was a nice phone itself. Do you plan on upgrading to the Galaxy S7? Or are your eyes on something else?
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