Samsung has taken the wraps off the Galaxy S7 Edge on Sunday. A question now arises: Can the Samsung offering trump Apple's hottest smartphone?
Here is a comparison of some specs of the two phablets.
Display
Both the Galaxy S7 Edge and the iPhone 6s Plus sport a 5.5-inch display. However, the Samsung offering packs in more pixels than the iPhone 6s Plus.
The 5.5-inch screen of the Galaxy S7 Edge has a resolution of 1,440 x 2,560 pixels and 534ppi in comparison to the 1,080 x 1,920 pixels resolution and 401ppi of the iPhone 6s Plus.
Processor and RAM
The Galaxy S7 Edge and the Galaxy S7 are available in two models: one with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, which will head to the U.S.; and the other with an Exynos 8 chipset clocked at 2.3 GHz. Both the handsets have 4 GB of RAM.
On the other hand, Apple's own A9 processor powers the iPhone 6s Plus. Apple claims that the A9 is the fastest chip used in a smartphone. However, at the time the Snapdragon 820 was not available.
Both the devices offer smooth and seamless operation; however, it will be interesting to see the benchmark comparison of the two processors for establishing which one is faster.
Storage
The iPhone 6s Plus is available in 16 GB, 64 GB and 128 GB internal storage options. The handset does not have any option to expand the memory.
Samsung is offering 32 GB and 64 GB variants of the Galaxy S7 Edge. However, the 64 GB variant will not be available in many markets. The Korean smartphone maker was criticized for not including a microSD card slot in the Galaxy S6 Edge. However, the new Galaxy S7 Edge has a microSD card slot, which can be used for expanding the memory to up to 200 GB.
Camera
Apple has introduced a new feature called Live Photo in the iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus that shows a quick three second video of a photo that has been snapped. The small video includes 1.5 seconds before an image was clicked and 1.5 seconds after it was snapped.
"A still photo captures an instant frozen in time. With Live Photos, you can turn those instants into unforgettable living memories. At the heart of a Live Photo is a beautiful 12‑megapixel photo," says Apple. "But together with that photo are the moments just before and after it was taken, captured with movement and sound. You can bring those moments to life anytime simply by pressing anywhere on the photo."
Samsung has also launched Motion Photo, a feature in the Galaxy S7 Edge that captures a short video three seconds before a picture is snapper. Motion Photo is a response to Apple's Live Photo.
Both the iPhone 6s and the Galaxy S7 Edge have a 12-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. However, the difference is in the aperture of the lenses. The Galaxy S7 uses F/1.7 lenses on the front and rear but the iPhone 6s Plus uses F/2.2 lenses.
The aperture is larger when the number is smaller and a bigger aperture results in better quality images even in low light conditions.
"Many of the most photographable moments of our lives happen when there's not enough light. We're either indoors or the sun has set. With the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, that won't be a problem. The brighter F1.7 lens and larger 1.4µm pixels on the image sensor capture so much more light that your photos come out sharp and detailed," says Samsung.
The Galaxy S7 Edge also has Dual Pixel technology that offers quick and accurate auto focusing.
Battery
Apple does not officially reveal the battery size of the iPhones but the company suggests that the battery in the iPhone 6s Plus can offer up to 24 hours of talk-time on 3G, up to 16 days of standby time, audio playback time of up to 80 hours and HD video playback of up to 14 hours.
The Galaxy S7 Edge gets juice from a 3,600 mAh battery. Currently, details like talk time, standby time and more are not available for the Samsung mobile phone.
Apple's iPhone 6s Plus does not support wireless charging or fast charging, which is available on the new Galaxy S7 Edge.
Form Factor
The Galaxy S7 Edge measures 5.94 x 2.86 x 0.30 inches, 150.9 x 72.6 x 7.7 mm, making it shorter and less wider but slightly thicker than the iPhone 6s Plus, which measures 6.23 x 3.07 x 0.29 inches, or 158.2 x 77.9 x 7.3 mm.
The iPhone 6s Plus weighs 6.77 ounces, or 192 gm, making it heavier than the Galaxy S7 Edge which weighs 5.54 ounces or 157 gm.
Price
The iPhone 6s Plus has a starting price tag of $749. Samsung has not officially announced the price of the Galaxy S7 Edge but customers should expect a premium price for the handset.
Operating System
The Galaxy S7 Edge will come running on the new Android 6.0 Marshmallow operating system.
On the other hand, the iPhone 6s Plus runs on the company's latest iOS 9.
Both the operating systems are loaded with a number of new features that are liked by smartphone lovers.
The Galaxy S7 Edge and the iPhone 6s Plus are top-end phones packed with high-end features and specs. It is a difficult to pick a favorite of the two. However, the option to expand the memory in the Galaxy S7 Edge may attract those who do not want to be limited with just the phone memory and want to use an external storage media.
