
Samsung’s Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge - devhxinc
http://www.theverge.com/2016/2/21/11077956/samsung-galaxy-s7-edge-smartphone-announced-specs-mwc-2016
======
jacobsenscott
Samsung has good hardware, but their software is so bad. I didn't mind because
I could root it and install cyanogen. But they made that impossible to do on
the S4. That's just malicious. I'm convinced their software engineers have a
competition to see who can write the worst code without getting fired and get
it shipped. Clearly nobody has ever been fired at samsung.

Their awful software combined with their pathological paranoia about people
rooting their phones means I'll never buy a samsung product again.

~~~
barbs
What exactly is so bad about their software?

~~~
Spivak
Ignoring the fact that it's ugly as sin and they bundle hundreds of useless
apps which are cannot be removed which can cause weird breakages when
disabled, the problem is that despite the fact that on paper their hardware
should crush every other phone on the market they somehow manage to make the
phones UI slower than a budget phone running stock (or near stock) Android.

To be fair, that hardware shines when Android fades away and you want to play
graphically intensive phone games but it's terrible for everything else.

~~~
WrkInProgress
Just curious, when was the last time you used a Samsung device ?

A couple of points as I used to share your opinion, but I recently purchase a
Edge Plus which changed my views (which while not as extreme were aligned with
yours.

1.) For the most part, I do prefer stock android in terms of aesthetics and
some key apps (dialer, etc).

2.) Samsung has really toned down their over the top "colourful" aesthetic on
phones. They are increasingly following Material design guidelines.

3.) Depending on the carrier variant (and this could be killer), Samsung
bundle apps are not as critical anymore and they definitely do not cause weird
breakages when disabled.

4.) Having used both a Nexus 6P (considered the cream of the crop when it
comes to stock Android experience) and there is very little performance
difference between the two.

5.) Samsung (and other OEMs) have always been ahead of the curve of stock
android when it comes to features that were co-opted into later versions on
Android. They were the first to have quick access toggles in the notification
bar, lock screen notifications, etc. So there were always some trade-offs.

6.) Even without getting into third party launchers, etc that can completely
ape stock android in looks - Samsung has finally included proper theming
support for their devices - so even a novice user can download a "Material
Dark / Material Light" theme.

One perfect example that is still relevant to this day is the multi-window
option that I use daily on my Edge Plus, which would not be possible on a
Nexus device (just yet).

------
kozukumi
Looks great but no way am I going to go back to Samsung now I have a Nexus 6P.
In the past the Nexus phones have always been kinda "nice but not great" but
the 6P is easily one of best phones you can buy. The camera is top-notch, the
screen is stunning, performance is awesome and battery life is incredible. And
stock Android is bliss. I can't really fault it :)

~~~
switch007
Not to rain on your hyperbole parade ;), but how long is the "incredible"
battery life? Asking for a friend with an ageing nexus 4, who swore not to
spend that much on a phone again...

~~~
pasbesoin
I've been considering a... is it the "5x", now? Mid-range price. The camera is
supposed to be excellent. Somewhat more pocketable.

And, being on Verizon, my understanding is that I can pop in the micro-SIM
from my 2013 Moto X and it will "just work", despite Verizon not officially
supporting the 5x.

For that is a primary concern of mine. Due to circumstances, I'm kind of stuck
with Verizon (in the U.S.). But I will _never_ again purchase a phone whose
updates are under their control. It seems to be either a Nexus that I can get
to work on their network, or an iPhone.

~~~
ageitgey
I have a Nexus 6P and got my wife a Nexus 5X thinking it would be a smaller
version of basically the same thing. The 6P has been nice, but the 5X has all
sorts of issues with bad performance. For example, opening the camera will
often freeze the phone for 10-20 seconds. Google still hasn't fixed this after
4 months [1].

It frustrated my wife enough that we sold it and got a used Galaxy S6 instead.
It worked a lot better overall (despite running an older version of Android).

It's really disappointing. On paper, the Nexus 5X looks like a great phone.
But in practice, basic features like taking pictures don't work reliably.

[1]
[https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!msg/nexus/8D7t6xJVw...](https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!msg/nexus/8D7t6xJVwyU/mCMw87-BAgAJ)

~~~
pasbesoin
Thank you! I will look into that further.

And I will consider the price bump for the 6P -- and how I will carry it
around.

~~~
marak830
I had the same worry when i purchased a note 3. It really becomes natural
after a few weeks(at least for me).

Just dont drop it on your face, reading in bed. A little more mass haha.

------
tempestn
I love the Samsung hardware, and own an S6 - mostly because I was excited
about Gear VR - but I really wish I could root my phone without forever
tripping some "Knox" bit that might theoretically have repercussions in the
future, and at the very least would affect resale value.

In an ideal world, root would be a built-in feature, which can only be
accessed through some obscure code, like the developer settings. It would show
a big scary warning, and it would have su app controls included. Rooting the
phone could trip some bit, sure, but a full factory reset should reset it.

The only reasons I can see not to do this are 1) extra work supporting people
who've messed up their phones. Easy enough to fix: we don't support phones
while they are rooted. 2) allows removal of built-in apps. But really, just
because you can't uninstall the stuff doesn't mean you have to use it, so is
there really a benefit there? And 3) it would take a bit of development effort
to add the feature. Perhaps the demand just isn't sufficient to justify it.
But I find that hard to believe. Unless there's a 4) that there's a segment of
the buying public that would actually be scared to learn a phone could be
rooted or something?

~~~
soared
The actual reason to not do it: They don't want you to. We sold you this,
don't fuck with it like that. You technically own it and can root it, but then
if it slows down you don't blame the root you blame the phone. When your
friend sees your non-factory clean S6, he associates all those custom features
with an S6, and not a rooted S6. They made a product and want everyone to use
it and see it as they intended, rooting detracts from that. You have every
right to, they just don't want you to.

~~~
userbinator
_When your friend sees your non-factory clean S6, he associates all those
custom features with an S6, and not a rooted S6._

Wouldn't the fact that "you can do all these cool things once it's rooted"
_increase_ the perceived value and help drive sales and push towards
manufacturers making it easier to root? IMHO the big selling point is all the
apps, not just what software came with the hardware.

~~~
tempestn
Not if people mess up their phones I suppose. Personally all I really want is
proper full image backups, and a few little tweaks like the ability to turn
off the stupid sound whenever it's plugged in and proper nighttime colour
filtering.

~~~
nathancahill
Exactly the same reasons I jailbreak.

------
SmallBets
Still happy with my S3 and feel I'm not missing any key features. The more
generations go on you realize just how incremental the phone upgrades have
gotten for quite some time now.

~~~
cpprototypes
The S3 feels like the "core 2 duo" of smartphones. Clearly not as fast as new
phones, but still good enough.

~~~
pmontra
I share your opinion. I'm sticking with the S2, the first Samsung phone good
enough to buy (the S was too limited). It still works, it's small and light, I
can mount it as a true USB disk, no need to change it. I'll buy some other 4"
phone when it eventually dies, maybe a Sony Z* Compact.

~~~
vram22
Does your S2 even shut down on its own? I have seen that happen, and a phone
dealer I told this to, said it was a known hardware issue.

~~~
pmontra
Sometimes it reboots, not often, less than once per month. No shutdowns
without reboots. It's one of the first phones, May 2011.

~~~
vram22
Interesting. Mine does the opposite - shuts down. Sometimes even pressing the
on-off switch does not turn it back on. I found that if I remove and replace
the battery, it starts again.

------
tshtf
The hardware quality of Samsung's flagship products has always been excellent.
However the software issues make the price ridiculous.

Good luck getting rapid Android updates for your carrier-modified Samsung
Galaxy S7. I'm stuck with a T-Mobile Note 4 with 5.1.1.

~~~
xexers
> Good luck getting rapid Android updates for your carrier-modified Samsung
> Galaxy S7. I'm stuck with a T-Mobile Note 4 with 5.1.1.

Is this still true? This article seems to suggest Samsung is more committed to
OS updates

[http://www.slashgear.com/samsung-makes-good-its-promise-
reve...](http://www.slashgear.com/samsung-makes-good-its-promise-reveals-
monthly-updates-18410195/)

~~~
tshtf
Not true in practice.

Samsung may pass the updates to the carrier, but the carriers fail to respond
in a timely fashion.

~~~
nailer
Don't buy carrier phones. Use money you have, and if you need finance to buy a
phone, don't buy a new phone.

------
Urgo
I've been a Samsung supporter for a long time. I've had the note 2, 3, 4, and
now 5. I really do love the Note 5 but I'm really mad at Samsung for creating
another generation with no removable battery. I maxed out the storage in the
Note5 when I got it since it also wasn't removable and I've never had issues
with that.

However, the battery life which was pretty decent at the beginning is now
horrible. At home, on wifi, I'm lucky to make it 12 hours with minimal usage
before needing to charge. On previous notes about half a year in I swap the
battery with a replacement and get full life again. Can't on the Note 5 and
looks like the S7 series is going to be the same :/ Really poor choice
Samsung.

I see why they're doing they're not making the battery removable though.
They're pushing portable chargers.....

------
AndrewKemendo
The most important feature of my S5 is the fact that it's waterproof - glad
they carried that over to the S7. My kids like to throw stuff in the toilet,
including any phone that is not actively being held, or splash on them from
the bath, so it has saved me many many times already.

That's what sets it apart from the Apple devices for me as a daily device and
I'm surprised more phones don't do that - but apparently consumers don't care
that much.

~~~
cryptoz
Waterproofing isn't as obvious as it seems, though. The previous iterations of
Samsung S series that were not waterproof included an amazing array of
environmental sensors that they can't seem to add and also have waterproofing.
The Galaxy S4 had a hygrometer and a thermometer, which are absolutely awesome
and represent a really amazing trend of smartphones and environmental sensing.
They removed those sensors for the S5 to be waterproof, and I'm sad to see
that continues with the new phones still.

At least they are still able to include a barometer, though! That's awesome.

~~~
AndrewKemendo
I mean this is just about tradeoffs. I'll happily trade a hygrometer and
thermometer for being waterproof. The former gives me marginally more
information about my environment is some kind of specific niche cases - the
latter prevents me from needing to buy a new phone and also allowing me to not
worry about it around water.

No brainer.

------
tetraodonpuffer
nice to see that sd cards are supported again as well as waterproofing, now if
they could figure out a way to removable battery with the same form-factor
(because if they had a plastic back they'd be crucified in the press, despite
the fact that a plastic back is just as good IMHO) it would be amazing

~~~
pcurve
I have s4 and i love its plastic build. It's a phone with 2-3 year life, with
$5 scrap value at the end. No a Rolex.

------
Geee
Samsung has copied Nokia N9 icon style? [http://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-
content/uploads/2012/07/nokia_n9...](http://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-
content/uploads/2012/07/nokia_n9_review_sg_25-820x420.jpg)

------
chmike
I stopped considering Samsung's phones because we don't get timely OS upgrades
and security fixes. I now bought an iPhone. There is a significant price
overhead but at least I get software updates and security fixes. No deceptive
surprize of defective device when receivîng it like some had with nexus
phones. The apple phones are so expensive because all other phones sucks.

------
lqdc13
> Perhaps the most significant change this year comes in the S7’s new
> 12-megapixel camera. It’s lower resolution than last year’s 16-megapixel
> shooter, but Samsung says its larger pixels let in 56 percent more light
> than before for better low light images.

What?

~~~
vinay427
Sounds just like what HTC did with the HTC One in 2013:
[http://www.androidcentral.com/megapixels-ultrapixels-
samsung...](http://www.androidcentral.com/megapixels-ultrapixels-samsung-
galaxy-s4-versus-htc-one-camera-shootout)

>The HTC One trades sheer megapixel count for larger (2-micron) pixels on the
sensor itself, allowing for improved low-light capabilities when combined with
its wide-angle f/2.0 lens.

>the HTC One runs rings around the Galaxy S4 in night shots

~~~
massysett
"the HTC One runs rings around the Galaxy S4 in night shots"

Maybe Samsung is doing something right here...but the HTC One had an awful
camera. I bought it for the low-light camera performance. But it had some sort
of hardware flaw that caused low light photos to have a purple haze. HTC had a
replacement program, which would have required me to go without a phone for
weeks. So I got Verizon to replace my phone with a refurb, which was actually
worse. I just sent the refurb back and kept the purple haze phone.

After this I switched to iPhone, not least because if it is defective an
exchange just takes a trip to a retail store.

~~~
kweks
I had the same phone, bought for the same reason, and had the same problem. It
was a hugely expensive phone, with terrible, terrible lowlight photos and
broken AF.

Furthermore, HTC refused to replace it under their replacement policy, as I
had placed a custom ROM on the phone.

The woman on the phone actually said: this is a known hardware issue, but you
changed your ROM, so bad luck.

Never would buy another HTC phone again.

~~~
lqdc13
Should put original ROM back. It's the same with all phones.

------
mataug
Good luck getting monthly security patches on this.

~~~
Pengwin
Considering it is Samsungs flagship device, and Samsung have offerings for
business security with KNOX, I have no reason to see why they wouldn't.

~~~
mrmondo
I'm not going to get into a flame war here but history has made me very
cautious of Samsung and from what I've seen they've been one of the worst
offenders when it comes to security updates, add to that the large number of
custom software they bundle with their devices and you tend to have quite a
large attack vector.

Reminds me of the time that I was working at a large (5K+) org and we found a
virus to be circulating that was spread by custom scanner software that was
really just bloatware / trayware that came bundled with various models, it
hardly ever got updated and it did crazy things like run a local (custom) http
server etc... what a nightmare.

~~~
Pengwin
Wow, that's a shame. I've had quite a different experience with my devices, so
much so that I went from a Nexus back to a Samsung device (note 4) for the
extra perks and have been very happy with it.

------
ohthehugemanate
It never ceases to amaze me the price Samsung pays for sticking with shitty
software. The main criticisms of the s6 and S6 Edge were:

* poor battery life * you can't uninstall all the bloatware.

As someone who is running a custom rom on an s6 edge, I can confirm: the
software us also the reason for the poor battery life. I regularly get 10
hours usage time out of my phone. It easily survives 24 hours of light use. My
rom isn't anything special or battery oriented; it's just a version of
TouchWiz android with all the S-features removed.

Imagine what Samsung could do if they shipped that way. Their 2015 offering
would have been one of the best built phones on the market, also leading the
pack in performance AND battery life. Imagine the S7 series if they didn't
have to pack extra battery into the enclosure.

Their business plan must hinge on selling the extra data collected through
S-crap. But I can't imagine it's worth more than, say, raising the price by
$20 per unit.

Hell, they could offer a "vanilla" version of the phone for $100 more and get
plenty of takers... And silence the critics.

~~~
throwawaymsft
It's the 90s all over again. Dell, hp, compaq destroying the experience for
Windows users. Apple holding the line on what is acceptable. Let's see how it
plays out...

------
neals
I do love the screen of the Samsung S-line. Not the size, but the actual
display, the colors and brightness is why I keep coming back to it.

Any other phone with comparable screens?

~~~
EddieRingle
The Nexus 6P is using Samsung panels.

~~~
dingo_bat
The Nexus 6P display, despite being made by Samsung, is way behind the
displays in GS6/7 and Note4/5\. Samsung keeps the best for itself.

------
ChuckMcM
I was pretty amazed at that last beauty shot of the S7 edge next to the
iPhone, to my taste it looked better. I have mixed opinions about the software
issues, on the one hand if the stock software is good enough, well its good
enough, but when it isn't the lack of choices is always painful.

My current phone is a Moto-X 2nd Gen which is good enough, not great.

------
gulpahum
Samsung Galaxy S7 will be shipping with Android 6.0 and Vulkan API support.
Exciting to see how Vulkan performs on mobiles.

[https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Galaxy-S...](https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Galaxy-S7-Launch-
Event)

------
neverminder
I am very disappointed by the lack of USB Type-C which is clearly the new
standard. Compatibility with their Gear VR is surely not good enough reason
since it will only affect minority of the users, besides there's always an
adapter.

------
dharma1
Was hoping positional VR with stereo cameras was here as hinted by Carmack, oh
well, maybe it's in the next Samsung phone (Note 6)

------
awqrre
nice, microSD is back

~~~
mrmondo
I wonder if it's still stuck on a USB2 bus though...

------
jaxondu
Samsung and LG both introduce their annual flagship smartphone so early in the
year. Doesn't it give Apple plenty of time to counter them spec wise if any?
Just curious, if you're Apple competitor, what's the pros and cons of
launching your flagship before and after Apple's launch?

~~~
lauritz
How about the other way round? Who's to say that they're not countering Apple
in their specs?

I think that with this one-year cycle that phone manufacturers have--
unfortunately--imposed on themselves, it is a strategic decision to have both
ecosystems at different times in the year--so you have all the media buzz for
one system at a time. If you were to have both competitors released at the
same time, there would be probably less reporting on either, and that may be a
risk neither Samsung nor Apple want to take--the two being the only two
manufacturers whose releases regularly make it into non-tech news outlets.

Also, if you have half a year between releases, then the pressure of being
able to directly compare specs is off, as compared to if both were released
the same day (then one would have 'won' the specs contest and the other lost,
which would likely be publicized widely, which both want to avoid by being
able to say: our next release will blow everything that existed before out of
the water).

Those would be my best guesses why we're seeing such consistent schedules.

~~~
massysett
I have always wondered if it's a cultural thing? Apple is a US company and
times its releases so they are ready for Western winter holidays. As a Korean
company is there something significant about spring?

------
qznc
There is nothing about the Virtual Reality deal with Facebook? Is Facebook a
non-removal builtin app with the S7?

~~~
isaac739
Samsung Oculus Gear app is pre-installed. I have a S6 Edge+ and the Gear VR.
It's awesome.

The Gear VR app has it's own built in app store. It's kind of like a mini OS.

You still have to installed Facebook & Messenger App through the Play Store.

------
gcb0
wow, this is more like a paid infomercial than a wired article about apple
products.

------
megablast
Thicker device, less megapixels on the camera, a risky move for Samsung.

And this is more a S6s than a new device.

------
emilsedgh
I few months ago I lost my 3 years old HTC One, so I had to get a new phone.

For the first time I decided to get an iPhone. So I got a 6s.

Worst mobile phone I've ever had.

The battery life is terrible. Now I understand why people have 'Power banks'
with them all the time.

The phone also dies with 40% battery! I turn it on, it shows a splash screen
meaning low battery, turns on, shows 40% battery, then dies after a moment
again.Funny thing is that I try restarting it several times and at some point
it starts working for hours (which means it actually does have 40% battery and
its not a calibration issue).

The user interface (which it was supposed to shine at) is just bad. I can
never find items I'm looking for. I had to read an article to find out how I'm
supposed to turn on the Hotspot feature (And it actually seemed like editing
xorg file!)

Viber/Skype start ringing and I cannot respond immediately, as the ringing
dialog doesnt even show up until I do to the application.

ios has only a few keyboard layouts and misses my language (Farsi) and I have
to rely on third party keyboards to type and third party keyboards are so
unstable. Sometimes the keyboard just doesnt show up until I close/open the
application.

My GPRS just started working when I inserted the SIM card to my HTC phone. On
ios? I had to configure it manually! Again, felt like Linux +10 years ago!

I know this is totally off-topic to this thread but I had to say this rant.
iPhone is only a fashion item. Its nowhere as usable as Android.

If you want a phone that just works do yourself a favor and give a decent
flagship Android phone a try. You'd be surprised.

(And I'm not a fanboy of Google/Android, I wish we had a FOSS OS with an open
ecosystem, but Android just works, unlike ios)

~~~
riotdash
"(And I'm not a fanboy of Google/Android, I wish we had a FOSS OS with an open
ecosystem, but Android just works, unlike ios)"

:D You most definitely are or you somehow managed to mix iPhone and Android in
every single sentence. Most of the stuff are not even opinions, they are just
simply wrong information/lies.

"The user interface (which it was supposed to shine at) is just bad. I can
never find items I'm looking for. I had to read an article to find out how I'm
supposed to turn on the Hotspot feature (And it actually seemed like editing
xorg file!)"

If you are serious about this I gotta say I'm speecless. It's actually amazing
you were able to turn on your computer and open the web browser since it take
just as much as turning on that hotspot: Pressing a single button...

~~~
emilsedgh
Your comment is unnecessarily hostile.

And I'm not an idiot. The 'Personal Hotspot' item was missing in my menu so I
searched internet and found dozens of articles describing how to fix it.

And fixing it included things like 'Enter your carrier name into the text box'
and 'Restart your phone'.

For example take a look at this:

[http://www.igeeksblog.com/personal-hotspot-missing-in-
ios-9/](http://www.igeeksblog.com/personal-hotspot-missing-in-ios-9/)

