S6 & S6 Edge : Samsung Gatecrashes Apple

Galaxy S6, S6 Edge and iPhone 6 – proportional comparison

This is the big one. The big kahuna. The ultimate smartphone showdown in 2015. The iPhone 6S? It will arrive too late. The HTC One M9? Loved or loathed it won’t come close to generating the same cultural awareness or sales figures. For better or worse, the iPhone 6, Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge are the phones that will dominate smartphone sales in 2015.

So let’s put them head-to-head.

Design – Luxury And Style Meets Luxury And Style

The first place to start when looking at the iPhone 6, Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge is their design. Why? Because what we have is not the battle many would have expected a few years ago.

In 2014 Apple took a sizeable leaf out of Samsung’s book with the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus stepping up to compete head-on with the Galaxy S and Galaxy Note ranges. It paid off in spades.

Now in 2015 it is time for Samsung to take a leaf out of Apple’s playbook. The new Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge have joined the Apple design school and it is a decision which has split Samsung fans right down the middle.

The first inklings of change come from looking at the size and weight of these devices compared to their predecessors:

    Galaxy S6 – 143.4 x 70.5 x 6.8 mm (5.64 x 2.77 x 0.27 in) and 138g (4.86 oz)
    Galaxy S6 Edge – 142.1 x 70.1 x 7 mm (5.59 x 2.76 x 0.27 in) and 132g (4.65 oz)
    Galaxy S5 – 142 x 72.5 x 8.1 mm (5.59 x 2.85 x 0.32 in) and 145g (5.11 oz)

    iPhone 6: 138.1 x 67 x 6.9mm (5.44 x 2.64 x 0.27in) and 129g (4.55oz)
    iPhone 5S: 123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm (4.87 x 2.31 x 0.30 in) and 112 g (3.95 oz)

Yes the Galaxy S6 range has got thinner and lighter while the iPhone 6 has got larger and heavier (though also thinner). As such whereas the iPhone 5S and Galaxy S5 were miles apart, now the Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge and iPhone 6 are all similarly sized.


But more than that, they are also now similarly styled. With the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge, Samsung has seemingly done the unthinkable and ditched its trademark plastic finish for the same aluminium unibody appearance as the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. They also now feature glass backs.

The positive here is this puts Samsung right up with Apple in the design and build quality stakes. The negative is the switches mean Samsung has had to compromise on its earlier principles: no removable back, no removable battery and no expandable storage.

If you’re coming from an iPhone then the fuss about this will baffle you, but to hardcore Samsung owners the loss of these features – plus the water resistance of the S5 – is an outrage. As such Samsung is clearly desperate to win new iPhone customers, possibly at the expense of some of its existing users.

If you don’t care about these missing elements then all three of these phones remain in the running for your affections. Otherwise I’m afraid things are looking grim. Elsewhere LG still offers a removable battery on its G3 while Sony’s Xperia models have waterproofing, but there’s no-one now providing them both – and that’s a great shame.

Displays – Everyone Levels Up

While Samsung’s design shift was clearly meant to close the style gap to the iPhone 6, where it hopes both the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge will stride clear are their displays. Most notably with the Galaxy S6 Edge.

    Galaxy S6 – 5.1-inch QHD flat panel, 2560 x 1440 pixels, 577 pixels per inch (ppi), Super AMOLED display
    Galaxy S6 Edge – 5.1-inch QHD curved panel, 2560 x 1440 pixels (577 ppi), Super AMOLED display
    iPhone 6: 4.7-inch, 1334 x 750 pixels, 326 ppi, LED-backlit IPS LCD
    iPhone 6 Plus: 5/5-inch, 1920 x 1080 pixels, 401 ppi, LED-backlit IPS LCD

On paper this looks like a typical Samsung Vs Apple battle: the former throwing a super high resolution at Apple’s seemingly more modest panels. The reality is the iPhone 6 (and the largest iPhone 6 Plus) punch far above their weight with superb brightness, contrast ratio and viewing angles.

That said the competition just got stiffer. DisplayMate gained early access to both the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge and its respected benchmarking process saw it proclaim them as the greatest ever smartphone displays. Crucially this isn’t only about resolution but increased brightness, colour accuracy and a low level of reflectance which makes them easier to use outdoors.

But the real head turning aspect in these three phones belongs to the Galaxy S6 Edge and its so-called ‘three sided screen’.

Galaxy S6 and S6 glass backs are non-removable

What this amounts to are curves on both sides which not only look great, but also offer additional functionality akin to the Galaxy Note Edge. Out the box this will mean services called: ‘Information Stream’, ‘Night Clock’, ‘Edge Lighting’ and ‘People Edge’.

The first two are on the Note Edge and, as their names suggest, scroll information or the time along the edge. Meanwhile People Edge is triggered by a swipe from the top right side and brings up most frequent contacts while Edge Lighting can tie calls from those people to a colour which lights up on the side of the phone when it is face down.

Interesting, yes. Revolutionary? No. Consequently the success of the Galaxy S6 Edge as functionality-based rather than aesthetic purchase will largely depend on how many third party developers embrace it. The potential is certainly there and Samsung has made a brave move that I hope pays off, but finding critical mass will be crucial to deciding whether the Edge display amounts to anything more than a cool gimmick.

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Samsung Galaxy S6 & Galaxy S6 Edge

Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge (left)  with curved  &. Samsung Galaxy S6 (right)

It's been rumored for months, but it's finally here: Samsung has unveiled its new flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S6. But this time it's accompanied by a cooler, better-looking brother — the Galaxy S6 Edge — which features an eye-catching design with a screen that curves around both sides.

Yes, we've seen this before, sort of: The Galaxy S6 Edge borrows heavily from the Galaxy Note Edge, which came out last fall and had a curve on just one side. But where the Note had a versatile side screen that doubled as an app launcher, news scroll and occasional ruler, the S6 version is more limited: The curves are mainly a design ornament, and there are no "panels" to swipe through.

So what good is it? Besides giving you something to brag about to your friends, the S6 Edge still has the side clock and news scroll, although you can only call them up in standby mode. You can also instantly call up a list of recent contacts with a swipe of your thumb, and if the phone is face-down, the sides of the phone will light up when someone calls you.

And, yes, also its hotness. The phone's design will definitely turn some heads, and I have to admit it looks and feels pretty sweet. I thought the curves might make videos or photos look warped, but that wasn't the case; Samsung letterboxes media ever-so-slightly in landscape mode to avoid this.

The "regular" S6 is no slouch in the design department, either. The Samsung Galaxy S6 is the most beautiful phone to ever exist in Samsung's S series — and possibly its entire smartphone lineup. Although the metal rim certainly evokes the same design language as Apple's latest iPhones, there's no question it's a great choice, and the subtle edging actually makes it grippier than the iPhone 6.

Specs and new features

Design aside, the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge reclaim the flagship crown from the Galaxy Note 4. Each has a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED display with Quad HD resolution, the same 2,560 x 1,440 resolution as the LG G3 and Google Nexus 6. It runs Android 5.0 "Lollipop." The global model packs Samsung’s latest octa-core processor, and it felt pretty nimble switching apps and surfing the web (I tried out the global version; Samsung usually uses Qualcomm chips for the U.S. models, although it hasn't said it will for the Galaxy S6)

The fingerprint scanners in Samsung’s phones have never been the most reliable, but the Galaxy S6 improves on the feature by ditching the “sliding” of your fingerprint across the button. Instead, you just press (wonder where they got that idea?).
Press the home button twice really fast, and you’ll launch the phone’s camera. Samsung worked hard to cut down the "quick draw" time — the interval between the phone being in your pocket to snapping your first photo — and it claims to have reduced it to 0.7 seconds. I couldn’t verify that exactly, but it certainly felt much faster than the Galaxy S5, which was a slowpoke in this department.

The S6 also has several high-end features you usually only find in real cameras or larger phones: The 16-megapixel imager has optical image stabilization, which can help reduce motion blur, as well as continuous autofocus, so you can track an object through the frame, keeping it in focus no matter how it moves. The continuous autofocus isn't that intuitive to engage, but it appears to work as advertised: I shot clear video of my hand, a moving wind-up car and a person moving around a crowded room, and each time the subject was kept in focus. It also has a wide aperture of f/1.9.
The front camera is 5 megapixels with an f/1.9 aperture. Both have real-time HDR shooting, which means you can select an HDR photo (which can sometimes improve exposure) after you take the pic.

Samsung has also built wireless charging into Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge. Not only that, but it's compatible with both major standards: Qi and PMA, which means you'll be able to juice up your phone almost any place that provides charging stations (e.g. Starbucks, airport lounges, etc.). Previous Samsung phones needed a special back plate for wireless charging — now the phone supports it natively.

The Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge are the first Samsung phones to support the company's mobile-payments system… which hasn’t launched yet. But when it does, in the next few months, the phones will be ready. Samsung says its payment platform will support both NFC and old magnetic-stripe readers (thanks to technology it acquired from LoopPay); this means it will work with potentially many more machines than Apple Pay.

Simplified menus and easy-to-use tools

Simplified approach

Although it sounds like Samsung threw everything but the kitchen sink into the Galaxy S6, the company says it worked hard to reduce complexity. Menus (particularly the camera's) no long pepper you with too many options, and there's a simple manager tool to let you keep track of which apps are hogging RAM or draining your battery.

One feature that Samsung actually downgraded from the Galaxy S5 is its water resistance. Neither the S6 nor the S6 Edge is rated for dunks in the tub; I guess Samsung, like Sony, discovered people don't care that much about how waterproof their phone is.

After handling the phone for several minutes, I already like the Galaxy S6 a lot more than last year's Galaxy S5. It’s disappointing that the S6 Edge doesn’t have the same utility as the Note version, but I can understand why since the device is targeted at the mainstream. As much as I was impressed by the Note's Edge panel, it's really a geek feature.

It doesn't hurt that the S6 Edge looks fantastic. With an emphasis on simplicity, design and restraint (there are just a few new features, but they're extremely relevant), Samsung is moving in the right direction with its flagship — even if that direction was largely trailblazed by Apple.

No word on pricing of either model yet, but you can bet the S6 Edge will cost more. It takes a lot of money to look this good.

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.

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Samsung Galaxy S6 release

The Samsung Galaxy S6 could be just a few months away. We've got all the latest specs, price and release date rumours
 We've had the Samsung Galaxy S5 handset since the start of the year, making it old news in the smartphone world. All attention may now on the recently launched iPhone 6 but we shouldn't ignore Samsung and what it has planned for its next handset, the Galaxy S6. Rumours are already starting to surface and we're here to filter through all of the information to try and get some solid information on the new flagship handset. We'll be updating this article regularly, so check back often to find out the latest information.

Samsung Galaxy S6 specs - all leaked?

We were expecting the Galaxy S6 to have a large Super AMOLED display with a super high resolution, but the latest leaks suggest it will be following in the Galaxy Note 4's footsteps with a 5.5in 2,560x1,440 resolution display. The leak comes from reports in China where the handset has allegedly been benchmarked using the AnTuTu app, revealing the phone's potential specifications.

According to the rumours, the Galaxy S6 will have a 64-bit octa-core Exynos processor with an ARM Mali-T760 GPU and 3GB of RAM. It will also have 32GB of storage, a 20-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 5-megapixel front facing camera. Unsurprisingly, it will be running Android 5.0 Lollipop rather than Android 4.4 KitKat.

Most of these specs seem like logical choices. Samsung has been gradually increasing its screen sizes other the years, moving from a 4.8in screen on the Galaxy S3, to a 5in screen on the S4 and a 5.1in screen on the S5. While 5.5in seems like quite a large jump in this respect, it's no different to what LG have done with its LG G3. We still don't know what the Galaxy S6 will lok like, but there's certainly room at the top and sides of the Galaxy S5 to add a larger screen without increasing the physical size of the phone. However, the fingerprint sensor built into the home button leaves less room to manoeuvre at the bottom.

The company already makes a QHD AMOLED screen for the Galaxy Note 4, too, and has proved it can shrink the panels down without compromising resolution with the Korean-exclusive Galaxy S5 LTE-A, which has the same 2,560x1,440 resolution. However, Samsung has also said that it wants to keep boosting screen resolutions and has claimed it will launch a 4K 3,840x2,160 smartphone in 2015. If true, this may compromise the Galaxy S6's status as Samsung's flagship smartphone, but we think a 4K display is a far more likely choice for the Note 4's successor, for instance, than the S6.

A 20-megapixel camera also seems likely given what Samsung's done before with its rear-facing snappers. The S3 had an 8 megapixel snapper, the S4 upgraded to 13 and the S5 had 16 megapixels. With smartphone cameras being such a huge selling point, Samsung is certain to once again upgrade the camera hardware and software. We'd also expect to see optical image stabilisation to match the Galaxy Note 4. It will almost certainly be capable of 4K video recording, and will likely include several custom shooting modes and effects exclusive to the S6.

Samsung Galaxy S6 release date - April 2015?

The release date is something that should be fairly easy to predict, thanks to Samsung's yearly release schedule. Following the launch of the Galaxy S3 in May 2012, we had the S4 in April 2013 and the S5 in April 2014. It doesn't take a genius to work out that April 2015 seems the most likely launch date of the Galaxy S6. The main question is when will the official unveiling of the phone be?

The press event is typically a few weeks before the phone's official launch date. Last year Samsung decided to unveil the S5 at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) show in Barcelona. However, this was a little unusual, as the company had previously launched its new phones at its own events. This may have been because the Galaxy S5 wasn't a major upgrade over the Galaxy S4, so the company decided it didn't deserve it's own dedicated event. Based on early rumours, the Galaxy S6 will have a brand-new design as well as improved internals, so it's more likely it will get a separate launch. It's still too early to tell exactly what the company has planned this time around, but if the company decides to go with an MWC launch, the show kicks off on 2nd March 2015; if it doesn't, expect a dedicated Samsung event around the same time.
The Galaxy S6 may get an earlier reveal, however. Early reports have suggested a major drop in profits has forced Samsung to accelerate its plans, so we could be seeing a release much earlier than originally anticipated. Speaking to the New York Times, IM Investment and Securities analyst Lee Min-hee said "Samsung’s profits in the mobile division will continue to deteriorate during this period of changing their line of smartphones."

Daishin Securities analyst Claire Kim voiced similar opinions when talking to Bloomberg. "We all know Samsung’s third-quarter earnings will be pretty ugly. The earlier release of its new phones could be reflected in its third-quarter earnings, it could give them a slight boost."

 

 

Samsung Galaxy design

Samsung Galaxy S6 design - all metal?

The good thing about a company having a range of smartphones that it releases throughout the year is that each release gives you some insight into the upcoming products. We had the Samsung Galaxy Alpha, which is the company's new premium-build handset constructed from a metal case, earlier in the year. What's interesting to note is that this handset's design is the direction that the company wants to take, rolling out the same build quality to the recently launched Samsung Galaxy Note 4. More recent leaks, purportedly showing the Galaxy A5 and A3 handsets, appear to show Samsung's lower and mid-range models already taking design cues from the original Alpha.
Given that the Galaxy S range has always been Samsung's flagship range, we'd be massively surprised if the company didn't use a similar design for the S6. That will mean that we'll finally get an all-metal frame, albeit with the familiar plastic back. This isn't a problem, however, as it can still look classy and it will mean that rear is still removable for battery replacements. When we saw the Alpha, it was the first time that we picked up a Samsung phone and were genuinely impressed with the build quality and design. The same design rolled out to the S6 could dramatically boost and improve that handset's image and make it appeal to new people.

That theory looks to have been supported by a leak of pictures on the french website www.nowhereelse.fr. The pictures purportedly show a metal frame and rear panel for the handset, though it could simply be a metal frame and core, as they're not the clearest of pictures. Head over to the site to have a look at all the shots.
Given that the Galaxy S range has always been Samsung's flagship range, we'd be massively surprised if the company didn't use a similar design for the S6. That will mean that we'll finally get an all-metal frame, albeit with the familiar plastic back. This isn't a problem, however, as it can still look classy and it will mean that rear is still removable for battery replacements. When we saw the Alpha, it was the first time that we picked up a Samsung phone and were genuinely impressed with the build quality and design. The same design rolled out to the S6 could dramatically boost and improve that handset's image and make it appeal to new people.

That theory looks to have been supported by a leak of pictures on the french website www.nowhereelse.fr. The pictures purportedly show a metal frame and rear panel for the handset, though it could simply be a metal frame and core, as they're not the clearest of pictures. Head over to the site to have a look at all the shots.

Samsung Galaxy S6 - otherwise known as Project Zero?

Samsung has traditionally referred to its flagship smartphones and phablets as Projects internally, with the Galaxy S5 known as Project K and the Galaxy Note 4 referred to as Project T. According to the latest leaks from Samsung's HQ, the company is currently calling the Galaxy S6 Project 0 - the first time the company has used a number rather than a letter. That suggests it is planning a completely fresh approach, starting from the ground up rather than evolving an existing design or strategy.

It makes sense, as the Galaxy S5 has underperformed at retail; if the Galaxy S6 is to succeed, it needs to be geniunely different. Although that contradicts much of the information listed in the section above, we would certainly welcome it - the Galaxy S5 was a fairly restrained update that didn't excite us as much as some of the competition.

Of couse, this could all be smoke and mirrors designed to drum up excitement for the handset, so it's definitely worth waiting until we get more information before holding your breath.

Samsung Galaxy S6 operating system

Samsung Galaxy  release

It's no secret Samsung has been working on its first Tizen phone, using an operating system it helped develop rather than rely on Google's software. A work in progress for many years, Tizen has yet to make its debut here in the UK on a smartphone, and although that might change in 2015, it's almost guaranteed that won't be on the Galaxy S6. Yoon Han-kil, Samsung's Senior VP of product strategy, said recently that Android "still needs to be out main business."

That means the Galaxy S6 looks certain to launch with Google's Android 5.0 Lollipop operating system. Samsung has already begun adapting its Touchwiz custom skin for Android Lollipop, with a leaked video running on a Galaxy S5 (seen below) revealing a new white theme, reskinned default apps, redesigned notifications pull-down and a new lockscreen with room for card-style notifications. The early build doesn't have any in-app animations, as Samsung is reportedly waiting on a newer build of Android Lollipop to add Google's Material Design animations. Even at this early stage though, it's clear the Galaxy S6 will have a new but familiar look when it arrives.
With Android 5 bringing support for 64-bit processors the S6 will almost certainly run on one; The most likely candidates are currently the Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 or 810, with the latter supporting 4K displays, but Samsung could also use one of its own Exynos CPUs. It quietly introduced the Exynos 7 Octa in October, which is actually a rebranded Exynos 5 chip with some minor performance improvements, but it is still fully 64-bit compatible. If the company follows a similar pattern to previous Galaxy handsets, we'll likely get a Qualcomm-powered phone here in the UK while other territories will get an Exynos variant.

Samsung Galaxy S6 - why no leaks?

It is still very early days for the Samsung Galaxy S6 and with attention focussed on the recently announced Note 4, Note Edge and soon-to-be announced iPhone 6 we're unlikely to see many Galaxy S6 leaks until later in the year. As a result there are no leaked images, no dodgy looking shots taken in factories in the Far East and no alleged specs. All these details will start to appear over the coming months and we'll be updating this article with the latest as it happens.

Samsung Galaxy S6 price 

Again, Samsung is pretty reliable and we'd expect the Samsung Galaxy S6 to cost roughly the same as the S5. There's a chance it could be a little cheaper or a little more expensive, depending on the hardware and display, but Samsung has keenly stalked Apple's pricing of the iPhone for some time so the S6 will likely do the same. The S6 will be a high-end handset, so expect it to have a high-end price to match.

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