After much anticipation and curiosity, Samsung today presented at MWC 2016 its new “workhorse”, the top of the range devices: Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge.
To imply how the event would be, Samsung distributed virtual reality glasses to everyone in the room. During the presentation some demonstrations about virtual reality were made.
But let's get down to business: what brings the Samsung Galaxy S7 (and S7 Edge) again?
Design
Last year Samsung surprised with Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge, with an excellent design and high quality material. Plastic was replaced by metal and glass.
After that said, the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge could not disappoint. The new S7 models follow the same concepts, from the design and feature set of the Galaxy S6. But they bring several improvements and improvements. There is also the return of features that users liked on the Samsung Galaxy S5, lost on the S6.
Hardware
5.1 Super AMOLED screen with a Quad HD resolution for the S7 and a version of 5.5 inches (with similar features) for the Galaxy S7 Edge, of course, the curvature continues to present, as the name implies.
Both phones have support for microSD cards to increase the internal storage capacity of 32GB (Samsung says that a 64GB model will be available in some regions).
It's back to IP68 certification - resistance to dust and water - allowing submersion in up to 1,5 meters of water for 30 minutes.
Disappointment for some, the S7 does not have USB Type-C ports, it will even come with the traditional Micro USB port. Samsung explained that Micro USB maintains compatibility with the Gear VR released last year, and that USB C is not quite ready to be released to a large majority.
A battery once again has been improved (fast and wireless upload modes have also been confirmed):
- 3,000 mAh on the S7 (The S6 had 2,550 mAh) - non-removable battery
- 3,600 mAh on the S7 Edge (the S6 had only 2,600 mAh) - non-removable battery
As to processor, the S7 line will have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 in North America and Exynos processors for other regions of the world. THE RAM memory deserved an upgrade to up to 4GB this time.
Another surprise came with the new camera, which has 12 megapixels, lower resolution than the galaxy S6 (with 16 megapixels). According to Samsung, it says that this decrease in resolution will help to obtain better images in low light.
The camera lens has a f / 1.7 aperture, allowing 25 percent more light to be received. The shape of the sensor has also been changed, from 16: 9 to a more traditional shape, the 4: 3 format. Samsung says the new camera can focus three times faster thanks to its dual-pixel system that allows each of the 12 million pixels can act as focus pixels, similar to the system Canon uses in some of its DSLR cameras.
Software
The two S7 models will have the Android Marshmallow 6.0 with Samsung's TouchWiz interface.
There are some new improvements to features for interacting with the S7 Edge, but what’s really new is the functionality Always-On display, which permanently shows a clock with notifications, a calendar or an image on the S7 screen. According to Samsung, this functionality consumes only 0.5% of the battery per hour. In addition, if the proximity sensor is covered, such as when the phone is in a briefcase or pocket, the screen will be turned off.
During the event Samsung mentioned the partnership with facebook, for the improvement of applications for augmented reality. The big surprise was the presence of Mark Zuckerberg who came to talk about this powerful partnership.
Release Date
The Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge will be available from the March 11 in the US (not yet announced, other countries). Orders can be placed on 27 in February.
Prices have not been announced, but should be similar to the Galaxy S6.
See the full launch event of the Samsung Galaxy S7.
What did you think of this release?
It took me but I wasn't late
How much does it cost now?