Samsung s8 set up your camera for great photos. Does the Samsung Galaxy S8 have a good camera? Where is the fingerprint scanner?
In that year Samsung decided that size really matters, so new Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 + got large screens by 5.8 and 6.2 inches, respectively. Other companies have already tried to make devices with the largest displays possible, but the Koreans in this regard have really reached a new, unprecedented level. How convenient it is to use the new "galaxies" - read the translation of the review from YugaTech on Treshbox.
It is noteworthy that even the simple version of the Galaxy S8 has a diagonal screen larger than that of the unsuccessful phablet. Galaxy Note 7, not to mention the "plus". What then will the eighth Galaxy Note be? Will his screen be bigger than 6.2 inches? It's very interesting what Samsung will come up with for fans of a stylus and a large display, but for now let's look at the eighth "galaxy".
Specifications
- Screen: 5.8 / 6.2 inches, Super AMOLED, 2960 × 1440 pixels, 570/529 ppi, Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protective glass.
- Operating system: Android 7.1 Nougat, Samsung Experience 8.1 shell.
- Processor: Exynos 8895, eight-core (4 × Cortex-A53 @ 1.7 GHz and 4 × 2.3 GHz @ 2.3 GHz), 10 nm.
- GPU: Mali G71-MP20.
- RAM: 4 GB (LPDDR4).
- Storage: 64 GB (UFS 2.1) with support for microSD cards up to 256 GB.
- Main camera: 12 megapixels (Sony IMX333 + S5K2L2 ISOCELL), Dual Pixel, aperture f / 1.7, optical stabilization (OIS), video recording 1080p × 60FPS, 4K × 30FPS.
- Front camera: 8 megapixels, wide-angle sensor, f / 1.7 aperture.
- Battery: 3000/3500 mAh, lithium-ion, fast charging from 0 to 100% in 75 minutes.
- Dimensions (mm): 148.9 x 68.1 x 8.0 (Galaxy S8), 159.5 x 73.4 x 8.1 (Galaxy S8 +).
- Weight (grams): 155/173.
- Slots for SIM-cards: one nanoSIM, the second is combined.
- Communication: 4G / LTE (up to category 16), Bluetooth 5.0, USB Type-C, 3.5 mm audio jack, dual-band (2.4 / 5 GHz) Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac, GPS / GLONASS / Galileo.
- Sensors: Fingerprint Scanner, Pressure Sensor, Accelerometer, Barometer, Gyroscope, Geomagnetic Sensor, Hall Sensor, Heart Rate Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Light Sensor.
- Water protection: IP68.
- Available colors: in Russia so far only black, golden and mystical (pink-gray).
- Price: 54,990 / 59,990 rubles.
Appearance and design
The flagship Galaxy S line has undergone a big redesign this year. The general concept has not changed, but the approach is completely different. Both versions of the smartphone received a curved screen on the edges, and the top and bottom bezels were greatly reduced. As with the LG G6, the corners of the display panel are rounded. It is not only beautiful, but also practical in terms of the strength of the case. If dropped or other external influences occur, there is less chance of damage to the matrix with rounded corners.
The hardware control buttons and the Samsung logo, which used to be usually located on the top frame, were removed from the front panel. This freed up space for the display. Only some sensors remain and front-camera... We have already seen this in Xiaomi Mi MIX, which has nothing on the front side of the case except a display, a camera and a pair of sensors.
The bottom edge is strewn with a 3.5 mm port, universal USB Type-C and speaker mesh. Sadly, Samsung hasn't dabbled in two separate stereo speakers just yet.
The top edge is equipped with a tray for nanoSIM cards. There's also an optional hybrid microSD card slot up to 256GB. It can be used for optional nanoSIM.
The rear panel contains a camera sensor that does not protrude from the body with a two-tone LED flash on the left and a fingerprint scanner on the right. The position of the fingerprint sensor is at least strange, but more on that later. The back of the device is covered protective glass Corning Gorilla Glass 5... It is slightly curved along the edges, which creates a pleasant visual effect, but also thanks to this, the phone fits perfectly in the hand.
Preserved protection of the case from water and dust according to the standard IP68... The smartphone can be immersed in water to a depth of 1.5 meters for no more than 30 minutes.
In general, there are no questions for Samsung in terms of appearance and Galaxy S8 designs. The phone looks impressive and fits nicely in the hand.
Screen
Samsung is doing the right thing by making the screen the main feature of its smartphones. They are allowed to do this, because their own panels Super AMOLED- almost the best on the market. Galaxy S8 has the most big screen in the flagship line of the South Korean manufacturer. 5.8 "is even more than the typical diagonal of a phablet (5.5-5.7"). This is a big improvement, especially considering the dimensions that are almost identical to the previous generation.
This diagonal was achieved by removing the hardware buttons and the fingerprint scanner on back panel... The Samsung inscription was also moved there. The frames have been reduced to a minimum - there is only room for the front camera, a pair of sensors and an iris scanner.
The edges of the display are curved, as you would expect from a smartphone from Samsung's flagship line. Recall that this "feature" first appeared in the Galaxy Note edge, and then migrated to Galaxy line S. Now there is no division into regular and edge-versions - both "galaxies" have a curved screen.
Screen resolution - 2960 × 1440 pixels(WQHD +). Thus, the pixel density is 570 dpi. Smartphone firmware has a function that automatically or manually changes the screen resolution to save energy. By default, the indicator is set to Full HD + (2280 × 1080). The lowest bar is HD + (1480 × 720). The latter is used when the power saving mode is on.
From left to right: resolution selection, picture mode and other settings
The aspect ratio of such a screen is rather strange - 18.5: 9. Not the most the best way for watching videos and pictures in games. But the firmware provides a function for adapting content to the display.
As for the matrix itself, these are top-end Super AMOLED panels. High Quality... Color rendition, detail and contrast - on high level... The display behaves perfectly under the sun's rays - readability is maintained. V Galaxy firmware The S8 has a feature to reduce blue radiation at night - reduces eye strain.
Camera
Samsung pays a lot of attention to the camera in its flagship smartphones. The eighth generation of the "galaxy" was no exception - the devices perfectly capture both photos and videos. Galaxy S8 uses a new Sony sensor IMX333 and S5K2L2 ISOCELL with resolution 12 megapixels(the same was in S7).
Sample photos from Galaxy S8 (images are highly compressed)
The main camera supports optical image stabilization (OIS)... The videos are very high quality, but it is clear that Samsung programmers have not yet completed software cameras. With sharp turns, the picture is slightly blurred. Perhaps this will be fixed with the final update before the start of sales. Supports video recording in 4K × 30FPS or 1080p × 60FPS resolution. The frame rate for slow motion video is capped at 240FPS at 720p resolution.
The front camera has received a big improvement - from 5 to 8 megapixels. There is a wide-angle sensor with a good aperture index - f / 1.7. Your selfies will definitely look good even in bad conditions lighting.
The camera app interface has been heavily redesigned. Now he looks like some social network like Snapchat. We've added a lot of interesting features and chips. For knowledgeable users professional shooting mode is provided. It allows you to manually adjust the ISO (50-800), shutter speed (1/2400 to 10 seconds), white balance and picture profile.
In the Galaxy S7, a lot of people liked the function of launching the camera by double tapping the Home button. Since it was removed, this "feature" moved to the unlock button.
Operating system
New items work on the Android 7.0 Nougat platform, on top of which the proprietary firmware is installed Samsung Experience(formerly TouchWiz). As is always the case with Samsung, several applications are preinstalled: Samsung Notes, branded Browser, Secure Folder, and others. Still, it's not as bad as it was in the 2014-2015 versions of TouchWiz.
Since the hardware control buttons were removed, Samsung decided to slightly neutralize this loss. Now there are almost always the virtual buttons Receiving, Home and Back at the bottom. Sometimes two disappear, but only Home remains. The center button has a pleasant feedback and customizable sensitivity. On the desktop, there is no separate button for calling up the application menu - a universal gesture from bottom to top or vice versa is responsible for this.
There is special software for curved screen edges: App Edge, People Edge, Clipboard Edge and more. All of this interacts in one way or another with the curved screen. For example, you can bring up the favorites bar by swiping over this area. There is also a utility for creating a screenshot or even a GIF animation.
Security features include a fingerprint sensor and an iris scanner. The finger sensor was moved to back cover and placed next to the camera. Thus, you can reach it with a normal grip only with your right hand and index finger. But also the fingers themselves should be long enough. The sensor itself is fast and stores up to four fingerprints.
Another innovation in the firmware and design of the smartphone - voice Bixby assistant... It can be called up in any application using the button on the left side of the case. Bixby is a mixture of traditional voice assistant trained artificial intelligence and recommendation systems. Wherever you call Bixby, it will understand the context and find exactly what you need. However, the assistant practically does not work in the test samples.
Overall, the new Samsung skin for Android is very enjoyable to work with. Smooth animations and cute icons are pleasing to the eye, and thoughtful functions make the usual interaction with a smartphone a real pleasure. For those who don't like standard interface, themes are available in the corporate directory - there you can find a shell to your liking.
The 64 GB test sample was free 53.98 GB... Thus, more than 10 GB is occupied by the firmware.
Iron
On the test, the guys from YugaTech.com got a smartphone in a version with a processor Exynos 8895 own production of Samsung. It is with this chipset that the Galaxy S8 for Europe and the CIS is equipped. This is the ninth generation of Exynos processors. And they can compete with solutions from Qualcomm, Huawei and other companies.
The Exynos 8895 is built on a 4 + 4 architecture: four ARM Cortex-A53 cores (1.7 GHz) are responsible for simple tasks, and four custom Exynos M1 cores (2.3 GHz) are included when processing heavy processes like games. But the main difference between the 8895 and the previous generation is the graphics accelerator. The novelty uses the Mali G71-MP20 video chip. The big increase in productivity is precisely his merit.
Even though Samsung has ditched the new Cortex-A73 cores (Snapdragon 835 and Kirin 960), the Exynos M1's own cores show roughly the same power.
Test results Galaxy S8 in benchmarks:
- AnTuTu: 174 155.
- Quadrant Standard: 43 185.
- PCMark: 5,371 (Work 2.0), 6,034 (Work 1.0).
- PCMark Storage: 4,421.
- 3DMark: 3,159.
- Vellamo: 7,269 (Browser), 3,324 (Graphics Metal), 3,621 (multi-core test).
- Geekbench 4.0: 1,974 (single-core), 6,339 (multi-core).
Calls, connectivity and battery
New Samsung flagship equipped with all modern communication standards, including 4G / LTE, dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0(for the first time in a smartphone) and NFC. Voice quality in calls is perfect. It's nice that Samsung still puts a lot of emphasis on the most important feature of a phone - making calls. The 5th Bluetooth receiver allows you to connect two pairs of headphones or other audio accessories to one Galaxy S8.
Having increased the screen diagonal, Samsung, unfortunately, decided not to do the same with the battery. An ordinary "galaxy" has a non-removable battery with a capacity 3,000 mAh, and in the Plus version - 3,500 mAh... However, the manufacturer claims that the battery life will remain the same.
In the benchmark PC Mark Battery Test, which emulates an intense load, the smartphone lasted 10 hours and 43 minutes. At the same time, the brightness was set to 50%, the sound was turned off, and the phone was also switched to airplane mode. To be honest, the result is controversial. The same Galaxy S7 worked longer in the same benchmark.
Galaxy S8 in mode video playback lasted 10 hours 45 minutes at the same brightness, volume and switched off networks. And this is also less than in the Galaxy S7 - by about 1 hour.
Stand for wireless charging Galaxy S8
As they say, here you can decide for yourself what is more important to you - a cool and large screen, or a little longer battery life. The battery is charged via the USB Type-C connector in about 75 minutes from 0 to 100%. Wireless charging supported. And yes - it doesn't explode when charged.
Outcomes
Samsung has tried to do really new smartphone original and innovative. Although we have already seen the LG G6 and Xiaomi Mi MIX, the eighth galaxy is a completely different smartphone. Koreans have come close to the point where we will just carry a large panel with a display without bezels and a bulky body.
In the Galaxy S8, you can find better screen, powerful processor, beautiful body design, quality materials and a good camera.
Of course, art requires sacrifice, so there was a fly in the ointment in a barrel of honey. The disadvantages include the poor ergonomics of the fingerprint scanner. In addition, the price has increased, although for Russia this is not particularly noticeable - the price tags for the new Galaxy S8 are approximately at the same level as that of the Galaxy S7 at the start of sales.
Good:
- Stylish design.
- Great screen.
- Powerful processor and a lot of memory.
- Good camera.
- Iris scanner.
- A well-developed shell for Android.
- Opening times could have been better.
- The price has gone up.
- The fingerprint scanner is inconvenient.
Long, bezel-less, with great camera and highest performance
Recently Samsung officially presented in Russia its long-awaited flagship smartphones Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 +. Even with major setbacks in the recent past, Samsung's flagship phones not only continue to be the main competitor to Apple's iPhones, but are also some of the most technologically advanced Android smartphones out there. Compared to the previous (seventh) generation, a lot has changed here, from the overall design to the location individual elements in particular, not to mention the improved hardware and updated software stuffing. Not all changes are for the better, but there are so many of them that we can say that Samsung has decided to start from scratch. It is worth noting that, to the delight of many, the difference between the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 + models is only in size, almost everything else is the same. There are no various modifications with a variable amount of built-in memory or RAM, different performance, the presence or absence of certain elements. The user does not need to bother with the choice, it is enough just to decide on the preferred dimensions of the device. The technical characteristics of both models are almost identical, with their listing we will begin this review, choosing the Galaxy S8 + model as a sample.
Key Features Samsung Galaxy S8 + (Model SM-G955F)
- SoC Samsung Exynos 8895 Octa, 8 cores: [email protected], 3 GHz (Exynos M1) + [email protected], 7 GHz (ARM Cortex-A53)
(another modification of the smartphone is based on SoC Qualcomm Snapdragon 835) - GPU Mali-G71
- Operating room Android system 7.0
- 6,2 ″ Super AMOLED touchscreen display, 2960 × 1440, 529 ppi
- Random access memory (RAM) 4 GB, inner memory 64 GB
- Nano-SIM support (2 pcs.)
- MicroSD support up to 256GB
- GSM / GPRS / EDGE networks (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
- WCDMA / HSPA + networks (850/900/1900/2100 MHz)
- FDD LTE Band 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 32, 66 networks
- TD LTE Band 38-41 networks
- Wi-Fi 802.11a / b / g / n / ac (2.4 and 5 GHz) MIMO
- Bluetooth 5.0 LE
- GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, BDS
- USB Type-C, USB OTG
- Main camera 12 MP (f / 1.7), autofocus, 4K video
- Front camera 8 MP (f / 1.7), autofocus
- Waterproof IP68
- Proximity sensor, lighting, heart rate, magnetic field, accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer
- Iris scanner, fingerprint scanner
- 3500 mAh battery, fast charging
- Wireless charger(WPC, PMA)
- Dimensions 160 x 73 x 8.1 mm
- Weight 173 g
Contents of delivery
Samsung Galaxy The S8 + received a stylishly designed matte black cardboard box with a laconic design. The lid cannot be removed completely, it leans back like a casket. Contents are neatly packaged in separate cells.
The set, in the best traditions of Samsung, turned out to be extensive. The smartphone comes with a connecting USB cable Type-C, network adapter with a variable output current and voltage of 5/9 V 1.67 / 2 A, an unusual-shaped key for removing cards, a Micro-USB - USB Type-C adapter, a second USB - USB Type-C adapter.
The company also included high-quality wired two-driver AKG stereo headphones with a set of interchangeable in-ear pads.
Appearance and usability
The design of the Samsung Galaxy S8 / S8 + turned out to be unusual and attractive. The streamlined body is completely made of metal and glass, there is no plastic here. A metal frame rounded on all sides, symmetrically tapering at the sides and expanding at the top and bottom ends, connects the two glass panels - the front and the back. The cover is Gorilla Glass 5, the glasses have noticeable curvatures on the sides. The bezel in the front plane of the screen is completely hidden behind the bend of the glass, so here we can talk about a truly bezel-less version.
The case of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + is absolutely symmetrical, the back side is also completely covered with Gorilla Glass 5 with curved edges. The edges of the glasses are rounded so strongly that they almost seamlessly (not counting the frames) merge into one another, creating a finished shape without a single sharp corner and straight edge. For this form, Samsung marketers have dubbed their new brainchild “smartphone without borders”.
Samsung Galaxy S8 + looks very attractive. And although such a design may seem too "licked" and "pampered", but such are the modern realities, the absolute majority of users liked it.
Due to the unusual aspect ratio of the display (not 16: 9, but 18.5: 9), the case turned out to be very elongated in height. At the same time, the absence of a frame on the sides of the screen in the front plane made it possible to make the case so narrow that it is quite comfortable to hold it in the hand even with a screen diagonal of 6.2 inches. True, the device is quite slippery due to its glass panels, smooth frame and streamlined shape.
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The curved edges of the front glass work in conjunction with the corresponding software in the same way as in previous models of the series Galaxy Edge... A complete set of elements can be found above the screen, including an LED event indicator and even an iris scanner.
The scanner works tolerably, but the very process of setting the blocking and constant recognition is quite tedious, because this system works only under certain light conditions and at a certain distance from the eyes. It is much easier and faster to use the fingerprint scanner, although its location here causes some bewilderment.
There are no more control buttons under the screen, only on the screen itself. This is not typical for Samsung, its Galaxy smartphones there was always a hardware key on the front (in latest models- with an inscribed fingerprint sensor). Now its place was taken by a virtual button on the screen, but it is also not quite ordinary. In order for the static button, which is constantly highlighted in the Always On Display mode, not to cause pixel burnout, it was made movable. Thus, at first glance, the central button on the screen, which is static at first glance, is actually constantly shifting imperceptibly in different directions.
The fingerprint scanner has been moved to the back. At the same time, it is strongly displaced from the center to the right, so that it is inconvenient for a left-hander to reach with his finger. In addition, the tactile platform of the fingerprint sensor does not differ from the neighboring elements, it is difficult to feel it blindly, you need to get used to it. In general, this is, perhaps, the most unusual and inconvenient variant of the location of this element from all of us previously encountered, Samsung has again been too clever with a fingerprint sensor.
Next to the scanner you can find a camera module with a flash, as well as the usual for smartphones Samsung sensor heart rate. None of the elements stick out beyond the surface, so the smartphone is stable on the table, does not sway when you touch the screen. The flash is as bright as possible.
There are no complaints about the operation of the fingerprint scanner itself, it works quickly, clearly and accurately. But, as already mentioned, reaching for him, holding the smartphone in his left hand, is very inconvenient.
The slot for installing cards is located on the upper end. The cover of the removable slide, on which the cards are stacked, has a rubberized gasket, since the Samsung Galaxy S8 +, like the LG G6, complies with the IP68 protection category, that is, the case is completely protected from dust and can be immersed in water to a depth of 1.5 m for 30 minutes. However, the developers did not go further: the design here is not designed for harsh operating conditions, like the LG G6, so the hero of the review does not have the certification of the military standard.
It uses a standard hybrid slot that accepts either two Nano-SIM cards or one SIM and one microSD card. The slide is made of flexible plastic, the device itself reports on the need to tightly close the connector cover to protect it from water.
The volume control button has been moved to the left side edge, here it is adjacent to a separate key for calling the Bixby smart assistant, with which you can work with available services and applications through touch screen, voice or text commands. The power key remained on the right side edge. The buttons are not very large, but the handling is quite comfortable, the keys are easily felt blindly.
All other interface elements are located at the bottom end. A USB Type-C connector is installed here, supporting connection external devices v USB mode OTG, the main speaker is brought out here, as well as a 3.5 mm headphone jack and a spoken microphone hole. Surprisingly, the developers could not install any of the elements exactly, each of them turned out to be offset relative to the longitudinal axis of the end, which spoils the impression a little.
Having studied the structure Galaxy cases S8 +, compare it with the previous Galaxy model S7 Edge. With the naked eye, you can see that the width of these smartphones is almost identical.
However, the Galaxy S8 + is equipped with a more elongated display with a custom aspect ratio, which allowed for more surface area under the screen. As a result, the 6.2-inch Galaxy S8 + sits in the palm of your hand just as comfortably as the 5.5-inch Galaxy S7 Edge.
In addition, the sides of the body of the review hero have become less slippery due to the increased width of the metal frame: the curved edges of the screen on the Galaxy S8 + have been reduced, the frame is now exactly in the middle between the front and rear panels. So, in general, the changes went to the novelty only for the benefit.
Samsung Galaxy S8 + is presented on the Russian market in three colors: black ("Black Diamond"), gray ("Mystical Amethyst") and gold ("Yellow Topaz").
Screen
Samsung Galaxy S8 + is equipped with display Super AMOLED with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 with highly rounded edges. The physical dimensions of the screen are approximately 70 × 142 mm with a diagonal of 6.2 inches, that is, the aspect ratio is 18.5: 9. The screen resolution is 2960 × 1440, the dot density is about 529 ppi. The corners of the screen, like the LG G6, are rounded, there are no side frames as such in the front plane of the screen, the upper and lower segments surrounding the screen are only about 8.5 mm high.
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The brightness of the display can be adjusted manually or set automatic settings based on the operation of the ambient light sensor. HDR10 mode supported. The AnTuTu test diagnoses support for 10 simultaneous multitouch touches. There is a vision protection mode (preventing eye fatigue). In the Always-on mode, the off screen displays information about the current time and date, as well as about missed events.
In the screen settings section, you can choose the resolution and applications that should be used in full screen proportions. It seems that the developers first made a screen with an unusual aspect ratio, just so that it was "not like everyone else's", and then they added various "crutches" to the software so that the programs would work normally with such a screen.
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A detailed examination using measuring instruments was carried out by the editor of the "Monitors" and "Projectors and TV" sections Alexey Kudryavtsev... Here is his expert opinion on the screen of the test sample.
The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface, resistant to scratches. Judging by the reflection of objects, the anti-glare properties of the screen are better than that of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected in the turned off screens (on the left - Nexus 7, on the right - Samsung Galaxy S8 +, then they can be distinguished by their size):
The screen of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + is slightly darker (the brightness in the photos is 107 versus 115 for the Nexus 7) and does not have a pronounced shade. The doubling of reflected objects on the Samsung Galaxy S8 + screen is very weak, which indicates that there is no air gap between the layers of the screen. Due to the smaller number of boundaries (such as glass / air) with very different refractive indices, screens without an air gap look better in conditions of intense ambient light, but their repair in the case of cracked outer glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be changed. The outer surface of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + screen has a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating (effective, better than that of the Nexus 7), so fingerprints are much easier to remove and appear at a slower rate than in the case of regular glass.
When displaying a white field in full screen and when manual control brightness, its maximum value was 370 cd / m² under normal conditions and rises to 580 cd / m² in very bright light. You also need to take into account the fact that in this case the smaller the white area on the screen, the lighter it is, that is, the actual maximum brightness of the white areas will almost always be higher than the specified value. For example, when displaying a white field on half of the screen and black on the other half, we obtained values of 460 cd / m² and 725 cd / m² for the above conditions. As a result, readability in the daytime in the sun should be at a good level. The minimum value is 1.6 cd / m². The reduced brightness level allows you to use the device without any problems even in complete darkness. Automatic brightness control works according to the light sensor (it is located to the left of the front speaker slot). The operation of this function depends on the position of the brightness adjustment slider, with which the user can try to set the desired brightness level in the current conditions. If the brightness slider is set to maximum in an office environment, then in complete darkness, the auto brightness function reduces the brightness to 6.4 cd / m² (a bit dark), in an office lit with artificial light (about 550 lx) sets it to 340 cd / m² (excessively bright) , in a very bright environment (equivalent to a bright day outdoors, but no direct sunlight - 20,000 lux or slightly more) increases to 545 cd / m² (sufficient). If in complete darkness and in office conditions, set the brightness a little higher and lower, then the screen brightness for the three conditions mentioned above is as follows: 13, 180, 545 cd / m² (ideal combination). It turns out that the automatic brightness control function works adequately and to some extent allows the user to customize his work for individual requirements. At any brightness level, there is significant modulation with a frequency of about 60 or 240 Hz. The figure below shows the dependence of brightness (vertical axis) on time (horizontal axis) for several values of brightness adjustment:
It can be seen that at the maximum and close to it brightness, the modulation amplitude is not very large, as a result, there is no visible flicker. However, when the brightness decreases, modulation appears with a large relative amplitude, its presence can already be seen in the test for the presence of a stroboscopic effect or simply with rapid eye movement. Depending on individual sensitivity, such flickering can cause increased fatigue.
This screen uses a Super AMOLED matrix - an active matrix on organic light-emitting diodes. A full color image is created with subpixels of three colors - red (R), green (G) and blue (B), but there are twice as many green subpixels, which can be referred to as RGBG. This is confirmed by a fragment of a micrograph:
For comparison, you can see the gallery of photomicrographs of screens used in mobile technology.
In the fragment above, you can count 4 green subpixels, 2 red (4 halves) and 2 blue (1 whole and 4 quarters), while repeating these fragments, you can lay out the entire screen without gaps and overlaps. For such matrices, Samsung has introduced the name PenTile RGBG. The manufacturer considers the screen resolution for green subpixels, for the other two it will be two times lower. The location and shape of the subpixels in this version is close to the case of the screen of the Samsung Galaxy S4 and some other newer ones. Samsung devices(and not only) with AMOLED screens... This PenTile RGBG variant is better than the old one with red squares, blue rectangles and green subpixel stripes. Nevertheless, some uneven contrast borders and other artifacts are still present. However, due to the very high resolution they have only minimal effect on image quality.
The screen has excellent viewing angles. True, when deviated even at small angles, the white color alternately acquires a light blue-green and pinkish tint, but the black color remains simply black at any angle. It is so black that the contrast setting is not applicable in this case. For comparison, here are the photos on which the screens of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + (profile Basic) and the second comparison participant, the same images are displayed, while the brightness of the screens was initially set to about 200 cd / m2, and the color balance on the camera was forcibly switched to 6500 K.
White box:
Note the good uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field (except for a slight darkening and a change in hue towards the curved edges).
And the test picture (profile Basic):
The color rendition is good, the colors are moderately saturated, the color balance of the screens is slightly different. Recall that the photograph can not serve as a reliable source of information about the quality of color reproduction and is provided only for a conditional visual illustration. In particular, the pronounced reddish tint of white and gray fields present in the photographs of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + screen is visually absent when viewed from a perpendicular view, which is confirmed by hardware tests using a spectrophotometer. The reason is that the spectral sensitivity of the camera matrix does not exactly match this characteristic of human vision. Note that in this case the picture occupies in height (with this screen orientation) the entire area available for displaying the image and goes over the curved edges of the screen, which leads to darkening and color distortion. Also, in the light, these areas almost always glare, which further interferes when viewing images displayed in full screen. And even the picture of films with an aspect ratio of 16: 9 goes into the folds, which greatly interferes with watching a movie.
The photo above was taken after selecting a profile Basic in the screen settings, there are four of them:
Profile Adaptive display differs in some kind of automatic adjustment of the color rendition to the type of the displayed image and the surrounding conditions:
Saturation and color contrast are greatly increased, looks terrible. What happens when you select the two remaining profiles is shown below.
AMOLED movie:
Saturation and color contrast are also increased, but not as much.
Photo AMOLED:
Saturation is slightly lower, but color contrast is slightly higher than in the case AMOLED movie.
Now at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen (profile Basic).
White box:
The brightness at an angle on both screens has noticeably decreased (to avoid severe darkening, the shutter speed is increased compared to previous photos), but in the case of Samsung, the drop in brightness is much less pronounced. As a result, with formally the same brightness, the Samsung Galaxy S8 + screen visually looks much brighter (in comparison with LCD screens), since the screen mobile device often you have to look at at least a slight angle.
And the test picture:
It can be seen that the colors have not changed much on both screens and the brightness in Samsung smartphone at an angle noticeably higher. The switching of the state of the matrix elements is performed almost instantly, but at the turn-on front there may be a step with a width of about 17 ms (which corresponds to a screen refresh rate of 60 Hz). For example, this is how the dependence of brightness on time looks like when switching from black to white and vice versa:
In some conditions, the presence of such a step can lead to plumes trailing behind moving objects. However, dynamic movie scenes on OLED screens are different. high definition and even some "jerky" movements.
The gamma curve plotted using 32 points with equal intervals in terms of the numerical value of the shade of gray showed that there was no significant blockage either in the highlights or in the shadows. Indicator approximating power function is equal to 2.09, which is slightly less than the standard value of 2.2, while the real gamma curve deviates little from the power dependence:
Recall that in the case of OLED screens, the brightness of image fragments dynamically changes in accordance with the nature of the displayed image - it decreases for generally light images. As a result, the obtained dependence of brightness on the hue (gamma curve), most likely, does not correspond a little to the gamma curve of a static image, since the measurements were carried out with sequential output of shades of gray on almost the entire screen.
Color gamut in case of profile Adaptive display very wide:
In profile AMOLED movie coverage is a bit narrower:
When choosing a profile Photo AMOLED the coverage is compressed to the borders of Adobe RGB:
When choosing a profile Basic coverage is compressed to sRGB borders:
Without correction, the spectra of the components are very well separated:
In case of a profile Basic with maximum correction, the color components are already noticeably mixed with each other:
Note that normal sRGB-optimized images appear unnaturally saturated on screens with wide color gamut without proper color correction. Hence the recommendation - in most cases, watching movies, photos and everything natural is better when choosing a profile. Basic, and only if the photo was taken on Adobe installation RGB, it makes sense to switch the profile to Photo AMOLED... Profile AMOLED movie, despite the name, the least suitable for watching movies and anything else.
The grayscale balance is good. The color temperature is close to 6500 K, while this parameter does not change very much in a significant part of the gray scale, which improves the visual perception of the color balance. The deviation from the blackbody spectrum (ΔE) for most of the gray scale remains below 10 units, which is considered a good indicator for a consumer device:
(In most cases, the darkest areas of the gray scale can be ignored, since the color balance there does not really matter, and the error in measuring color characteristics at low brightness is large.)
For some reason, only when choosing a profile Adaptive display it becomes possible to adjust the color balance with three adjustments of the intensity of the primary colors, but due to the too wide color gamut, it is in this profile that it makes no sense to correct the balance.
Let's summarize. The screen has a very high maximum brightness and excellent anti-glare properties, so the device can be used outdoors without any problems, even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be lowered to a comfortable value. It is permissible to use the mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works adequately. The advantages of the screen include an effective oleophobic coating, as well as close to sRGB color gamut and good color balance. At the same time, let's recall the general advantages of OLED screens: true black color (if nothing is reflected in the screen), noticeably less than that of LCDs, the drop in image brightness when viewed from an angle. The disadvantages include modulation of the screen brightness. Users who are particularly sensitive to flicker may experience increased fatigue due to this. However, the overall quality of the screen is very high. Separately, we note that from the point of view of image quality, curled edges only harm, since this design find introduces very noticeable color tone distortions and reduces brightness at the edges of the picture, and in ambient light conditions leads to inevitable glare at least along one long side of the screen.
Camera
The front 8-megapixel camera does not receive its own flash, but it has a fast f / 1.7 lens and even supports intelligent autofocus with face detection. As a front flash, you can use the "fill" bright illumination of the screen directly at the moment of shooting. Naturally, there is a mode for retouching selfie photos. The front camera shoots well for its level, there are no special complaints about detail and sharpness, but it is difficult to say that this camera is somehow better than its counterparts from Huawei, for example. Not bad, but nothing more.
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The main camera uses a 12-megapixel sensor with a pixel size of 1.4 microns, as well as a fast lens with an aperture of f / 1.7, the system optical stabilization and Dual Pixel technology, which is designed to provide fast enough autofocus to capture even the sharpest movements in low light conditions. There is a very bright LED flash.
The camera shoots in automatic or manual mode. In the mode manual settings you can adjust the shutter speed (from 1/24000 to 10 s), sensitivity (up to ISO 800), white balance and exposure compensation. There is the possibility of retouching images, support for HDR auto and a selective focus mode to change the depth of field in the finished image. Also, the camera is connected to an intelligent Bixby assistant, which must recognize objects of shooting, find places and translate texts from the screen.
Using the Camera2 API, you can transfer camera control third party applications... It is also possible to save images in RAW.
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The camera can shoot video in 4K resolution (3840 × 2160), but only at 30 fps, and 60 fps is available only in Full HD (1920 × 1080). There is also a shooting mode at an intermediate resolution of 2560 × 1440, also at 30 fps. There's an optical image stabilization feature that really makes handheld shooting on the go extremely smooth. In any of the resolutions, the camera copes with video shooting very efficiently: sharpness, color rendition and detail are normal, there is enough brightness, artifacts and slowdowns are out of the question. There are no complaints about sound recording either: the sensitivity of the microphones is high, the sound is clear, loud, the noise reduction system adequately copes with the wind noise.
- Movie # 1 (87 MB, 3840 × [email protected] fps, H.264, AAC)
- Movie # 2 (33 MB, 2560 × [email protected] fps, H.264, AAC)
- Movie # 3 (28 MB, 1920 × [email protected] fps, H.264, AAC)
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Good sharpness along the frame field. |
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Quite good detail in the distant shots. |
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For indoor shooting, the detail is excellent. |
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The camera handles fine and complex details well. |
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Good detail when shooting at dusk. |
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The text has been worked out perfectly. |
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The camera copes well with macro photography. |
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Good sharpness in the field of the frame and in plans. |
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With the removal of the plan, the sharpness falls off slowly and smoothly. |
We also tested the camera on a laboratory bench using our method.
| Jpeg | RAW |
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Illumination ≈3200 lux. |
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Illumination ≈1400 lux. |
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Illumination ≈130 lux. |
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Illumination ≈130 lux, flash. |
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Lighting<1 люкс, вспышка. |
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Samsung continues to improve the quality of its cameras. The megapixel race, fortunately, has been forgotten, and now the manufacturer pays more attention to detail. Even in difficult scenes, the camera does not forget about small details, so the images look good even in low light. Soapiness is gradually fading away, which means that the algorithms of the program have improved. The program has practically ceased to "eat" the details, and sharping is almost invisible. Of course, if you look closely, you can find both, but this is nit-picking.
A laboratory test confirms that the camera has remained virtually unchanged from the previous generation. However, there are differences, they just lie in the little things that are difficult to reflect on the stand. For those who like to tinker with photo processing, the manufacturer has made a very good RAW, which in some situations really allows you to get a result better than an intra-camera JPEG.
In general, the camera turned out to be quite flagship and will perfectly cope with many different scenes.
Telephone part and communications
The communication capabilities of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + include support for the advanced LTE Cat.16 technology, all three LTE FDD frequency bands of interest to us (Band 3, 7, 20) are supported, and there is also support for four TDD LTE bands (Band 38-41). Supports two Wi-Fi bands (2.4 and 5 GHz), there is Bluetooth 5.0 LE, you can organize a wireless access point via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth channels. The developers claim that thanks to support for Wi-Fi 1204-QAM and LTE Cat.16 standards, the download speed compared to previous flagships Samsung Galaxy S7 / S7 edge is increased by 20% both over Wi-Fi and over the mobile Internet. The device behaves confidently in the city limits of the Moscow region, the quality of signal reception raises no objections, the device demonstrates high speeds in the usual testing places, quickly restores the connection after a break.
The device has an NFC module, but it does not support electronic travel cards. The USB Type-C connector supports connecting external devices in USB OTG mode, the corresponding adapter is included in the accessory kit. The data transfer speed between a computer and a smartphone via a cable connected in the case of a PC to the USB 3.1 Type-C ports is about 26 MB / s.
The navigation module works with GPS (with A-GPS), with the domestic Glonass and with the Chinese Beidou. The first satellites during a cold start are detected within the first seconds, the positioning clarity is maximum. There is a built-in magnetic compass.
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The phone application supports Smart Dial, that is, when dialing a phone number, a search is immediately carried out by the first letters in contacts. In the conversational dynamics, the voice of a familiar interlocutor is well recognizable, there is no extraneous noise, the sound is natural, clear, the volume reserve is sufficient. The power of the vibration alert is much higher than the average level; its intensity can be changed manually.
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Software and multimedia
As a software platform, the Samsung Galaxy S8 + uses Android OS version 7.0 Nougat with its own proprietary shell. There is a convenient opportunity to quickly transfer all data from an old smartphone to a new Samsung Galaxy S8 or S8 + using the OTG adapter that is included in the package.
First of all, it should be noted that the enlarged display with a changed aspect ratio and high resolution provides more space for any information, text or graphics, so a lot of attention has been paid to the dual-window mode. Not every application here can be made to work in a small window; for this, each has a corresponding icon displayed in the menu of the last opened programs. That is, you first need to start and minimize the application in order to understand whether it has the ability to work in two-window mode, and then find the second one. Not a very simple and intuitive option, but you can get used to it. In addition, these windows can be resized. There is also the possibility of reducing the entire working area of the screen for ease of control with one hand. We cannot say that this functionality is convenient in practice, since all elements on the screen become too small, especially the buttons of the virtual keyboard, but there is such a possibility.
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Due to the non-standard aspect ratio of the screen, the video in the player is displayed with black bars on the sides, but using scaling, the image can be stretched to the very edges of the screen. Some games report possible display issues, but overall we have not encountered any unsolvable issues.
Another feature of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + screen is the ability to use its curved sides, available for interaction with fingers due to the lack of frames. There is nothing new here: as before, you can display an illuminated virtual strip on the side of the screen, when you press it, a menu is opened that is responsible for quick contacts and instant access to the most used applications. Also here it becomes possible to select and save any part of the screen with further text recognition.
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But of course, the main feature of the software of the new Korean smartphones was the emergence of Samsung's voice assistant - Bixby, which is a direct competitor to both Siri and Google Assistant, which, by the way, remained in place. As conceived by the developers, Bixby will be able not only to answer questions by collecting information on the Web, but also to identify a product using a camera and search for it on Amazon, translate texts in real time, and recognize landmarks. But the functions that will allow you to fully control the smartphone through voice commands are not yet available and will appear later.
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As already mentioned, the smartphone's camera is connected to the Bixby intelligent assistant, which is supposed to recognize objects of shooting, find places and translate texts from the screen. True, in practice, for the Russian realities, all this is still difficult for him. Even if the main language of the device is Russian, the program will persistently offer to translate from any other language, but not from Russian. The assistant also does not know everything yet. At the same time, there were no problems with the translation from English into Russian.
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There are very few additional programs, and those that exist are represented mainly by a set of Microsoft applications. Of particular note is Game Launcher, a handy game aggregator that automatically collects all installed game applications in one place, and also provides additional functions related to this. For example, it is possible to start recording the gameplay from the screen right during the game, with its further broadcast on the network. You can also use Game Launcher to improve system performance when launching selected games to enhance your gaming experience.
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To listen to music, only a regular Google Play Music player is provided, supplemented by a powerful set of manual settings and equalizer presets, as well as Adapt sound technology for headphones. The set with the smartphone comes with two-driver AKG headphones with a very good sound quality for their level. But if everything is fine with the sound in the headphones, then the main speaker of the smartphone is not so impressive. It produces a rather monotonous and flat sound, without noticeable depth and saturation, although there are no complaints about the purity and volume reserve.
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Performance
The hardware platform of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + is built on the Samsung Exynos 8895 Octa SoC with 8 cores in two clusters: 4 Exynos M1 cores up to 2.3 GHz and 4 ARM Cortex-A53 cores up to 1.7 GHz. This SoC is made using the latest 10nm process technology. Responsible for graphics processing is the Mali-G71 video accelerator with support for the Vulkan graphics API. The amount of RAM is 4 GB, and the internal memory is 64 GB, of which about 1.6 GB of RAM and 52.5 GB of ROM are initially free.
It should be noted that traditionally for Samsung Galaxy devices can be based on different SoCs: in this case, it is Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 or Exynos 8895. As always, the question of supply of this or that modification will depend on the region. The smartphone we received for tests ran on the Samsung Exynos 8895 platform.
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According to the results of all SoC tests, without exception, Samsung Exynos 8895 showed the maximum results, it is the most powerful mobile platform at the moment of all we tested. Accordingly, the Samsung Galaxy S8 + is one of the most powerful smartphones available today and has a significant headroom for future updates. The smartphone confidently copes with any tasks in real scenarios, and thanks to the powerful video accelerator, it behaves perfectly even in the most demanding games. These videos of the gameplay in Modern Combat 5 and in Mortal Kombat X were recorded by the built-in means of the smartphone itself using the Game Launcher application.
Benchmarking AnTuTu and GeekBench:
All the results obtained by us when testing the smartphone in the most recent versions of popular benchmarks, we have summarized in tables for convenience. Several other devices from different segments are usually added to the table, also tested on similar latest versions of benchmarks (this is done only for a visual assessment of the obtained dry numbers). Unfortunately, within the framework of one comparison, it is impossible to present the results from different versions of benchmarks, therefore, many worthy and relevant models remain behind the scenes - due to the fact that they once passed the "obstacle course" on previous versions of test programs.
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Testing the graphics subsystem in game tests 3DMark, GFXBenchmark and Bonsai Benchmark:
When testing in 3DMark for the highest performing smartphones, it is now possible to run the application in Unlimited mode, where the rendering resolution is fixed at 720p and VSync is disabled (which can cause the speed to rise above 60 fps).
| Samsung Galaxy S8 + (Samsung Exynos 8895 Octa) |
Lg g6 (Qualcomm Snapdragon 821) |
Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe (Qualcomm Snapdragon 820) |
Honor 8 Pro (HiSilicon Kirin 960) |
Meizu Pro 6 Plus (Samsung Exynos 8890 Octa) |
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| 3DMark Ice Storm Sling Shot ES 3.1 (more is better) |
2628 | 2409 | 2676 | 1417 | 1869 |
| GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (Onscreen, fps) | 19 | 12 | 31 | 18 | 13 |
| GFXBenchmark Manhattan ES 3.1 (1080p Offscreen, fps) | 36 | 24 | 32 | 21 | 24 |
| GFXBenchmark T-Rex (Onscreen, fps) | 57 | 38 | 59 | 46 | 52 |
| GFXBenchmark T-Rex (1080p Offscreen, fps) | 103 | 61 | 92 | 57 | 71 |
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Browser cross-platform tests:
As for benchmarks for evaluating the speed of the javascript engine, you should always make allowances for the fact that the results in them significantly depend on the browser in which they are launched, so that the comparison can be truly correct only on the same OS and browsers, and this possibility is available when testing not always. In the case of Android OS, we always try to use Google Chrome.
| Samsung Galaxy S8 + (Samsung Exynos 8895 Octa) |
Lg g6 (Qualcomm Snapdragon 821) |
Asus Zenfone 3 Deluxe (Qualcomm Snapdragon 820) |
Honor 8 Pro (HiSilicon Kirin 960) |
Meizu Pro 6 Plus (Samsung Exynos 8890 Octa) |
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| Mozilla kraken (ms, less is better) |
2535 | 2494 | 2931 | 3139 | 13047 |
| Google octane 2 (more is better) |
9905 | 10036 | 9287 | 10155 | 3116 |
| SunSpider (ms, less is better) |
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Testing has traditionally been conducted at typical power consumption levels without using power saving features. In the settings of the Samsung Galaxy S8 +, you can find operating modes from high-performance to economy, the choice of which will affect a lot, right down to the brightness and even the screen resolution.
Continuous reading in the Moon + Reader program (with a standard, light theme) at the minimum comfortable brightness level (the brightness was set to 100 cd / m2) with auto scrolling lasted 21.5 hours until the battery was fully discharged, and with continuous high quality video viewing (720p ) with the same brightness level via a home Wi-Fi network, the device operates up to 14.5 hours. In 3D games mode, the smartphone can work for more than 5 hours.
The smartphone should support fast charging, but we were not able to test this, since at the time of writing this review, the test device did not come with an AC adapter. However, from a conventional charger (5 V 2 A), the device charges quite quickly, within about an hour and a half with a current of 1.75 A at a voltage of 5 V. Wireless charging is also supported (WPC and PMA).
Outcome
The prices for the Russian market are as follows: On April 28, the Galaxy S8 and S8 + smartphones went on sale in Russia at a suggested retail price of 54,990 and 59,990, respectively. It is not entirely clear why the difference in the cost of devices of the same functionality with a slight difference only in the size of the display and the battery is as much as 5 thousand. Be that as it may, in the case of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + for 60 thousand, the manufacturer offers one of the best smartphones in many respects, including camera quality, hardware platform performance and very advanced communication capabilities, in an attractive and very unusual case, as well as with a lot of additional functions, many of which, however, were available in the previous models of the series.
At the same time, it cannot be said that the smartphone has become some kind of breakthrough, a new word in the creation of mobile devices and is completely devoid of disadvantages. A single main camera, although it is one of the best on the market, still looks rather strange against the background of the general movement towards increasing the number of modules. Also, one cannot praise the sound of the main speaker: in terms of sound, the device is clearly inferior to the flagship smartphones Apple and Huawei. The decision to move the fingerprint scanner to the back, and even to such an unfortunate location, was also highly questionable. Well, one cannot but recall the recent problems with the ignition of the batteries of Samsung mobile devices, against the background of which users can now be wary of paying a very high price, which the manufacturer asked for their mobile novelties, right away. And nevertheless, the interest in the flagship devices of the Korean company has not weakened, it can be seen. Even those who were not going to shell out 60 thousand rubles for a smartphone are now eagerly discussing its capabilities on the Internet. However, something in the testing process remained undisclosed for us as well, since we did not have the final commercial sample in our hands. Most likely, we are still waiting, at least, a meeting with the brought to mind Bixby assistant, as well as with camera firmware updates, which may well expand its already remarkable capabilities.
In conclusion, we suggest watching our video review of the Samsung Galaxy S8 + smartphone:
We also suggest watching our video review comparing smartphones Samsung Galaxy S8 + and Galaxy S7 Edge:
Sony has been installing excellent IPS displays in smartphones for a long time, so choosing between the XZ Premium and S8 + based on image quality will be a matter of taste. In comparison with Samsung, the fingerprint scanner of the Japanese flagship can already be used without abusive vocabulary, and by the quality of the photo, you can preliminarily decide that Sony makes slightly less bright, but clearer pictures with natural color rendition, and Samsung blurs the frame more, but gives out a wider dynamic range ... And judging by the preliminary comparisons with the iPhone 7 Plus, Sony still straddled its photo algorithms properly. It is high time!
For the rest - no, excuse my English, know-how: no voice assistants, no exotic camera modes, no edges, etc. But this is not important - the main thing is that the smartphone has a high-quality camera, display, sound and there are no problems with autonomy and speed. Because we don't have to talk about it for a while - due to a shortage in the supply of Snapdragon 835 and some bureaucracy, the XZ Premium will go on sale only in the summer, a few months after the start of sales of the LG G6 and Samsung Galaxy S8.
conclusions
Most of the complaints about the S8 / S8 + are related to ergonomics. Samsung hasn't removed the fingerprint scanner the way Apple removed the audio jack, but it has made the scanner inconvenient to use. And so that Bixby, into which the Koreans poured a lot of money, did not “drown”, they “nailed” it to a separate key and replaced the volume down buttons. Whether you want it or not, you will periodically use it.
I will repeat once again: Galaxy S8 / S8 + is not S7 "under new sauce", it is, in some way, a return to the origins. Because five years ago, passers-by in the same way rolled their necks on the "huge" 4.7-inch HD display inside the sleek, sleek Galaxy S3 body. In the same model, Samsung for the first time introduced the stupid, as time has shown, voice assistant S-Voice and multiple windows to resemble a computer (and in the S8 "reinvented" Windows Continuum). And even "childhood diseases" with the display were also typical for the S3 and S8.
I don't like the soapy design of the Galaxy S8 +, and not I like the way of fencing inconveniences for old uses in order to courageously overcome them with new ones (be it a voice assistant or a face / iris scanner). I do not like the "insipid" sound in the headphones and last year's rear camera. I don't like the autonomy under load compared to the S7 edge. Logically, now I have to say "for the same money it is better to buy% smartphone_name%!" ... but there is no such smartphone.
The Sony flagship will appear only in the "bright future" and it is not known whether it will be better in all respects, LG offers a relatively slow smartphone for a price comparable to the S8, which has a screen, optical stabilization, and a front camera worse. Huawei also did not stand next to either in performance or in the ratio of the display diagonal to the dimensions of the case, and even in the quality of cameras it almost "jumped" to last year's Samsung camera.
The "godlike" Xiaomi, as practice has shown, is not strong enough to compete with the flagships of 2017. Therefore, the Chinese simply wrapped the Snapdragon 835 in an inexpensive case and installed cameras "slightly better than the iPhone 7 Plus." Everyone was waiting for a miracle, but got another powerful "Chinese".
What a miracle there is when no one (even LG, the giant in the production of OLED matrices) is still unable to build an equally bright, colorful and correctly calibrated display, even if not curved? How did it happen that Samsung, which before the S7 edge even sculpted cores for "hardware" according to a ready-made recipe, built the most powerful processor in the world, better than the "craft" chip of the most experienced Qualcomm?
More recently, two fresh "space" flagships of the Samsung Galaxy S8 and its slightly larger version of the Galaxy S8 + have appeared on the mobile device market. It would seem that there is something else to chase, what other improvements can be put into these small devices. Apparently, Samsung, which should have happened sooner or later, also asked similar questions. Since, after the breakthrough in many ways Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, it has become pointless to improve gadgets technically, where should we go next? The South Korean developer has taken the development of its flagships along a new path. Namely - design and usability. Instead of trying to outplay its biggest competitor, the IPhone, the Morning Freshness developers turned their attention to the comfort of their own customers.
Specifications Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus
In terms of technical stuff, the S8 and S8 + rightfully occupy a leading position not only among their own representatives, but also among the flagships of other brands. They are quite a bit outperforming their younger predecessors - S7 and S7 Edge. However, Samsung representatives themselves pay much more attention to the design of the phone and various “chips” that have appeared here. So let's take a look at what is here.
Body materials
The body of the phone, like most modern Samsung phones, is made of glass and metal. The frame that framing the perimeter is metal, and the front and rear panels are completely hidden under the glass. The S8, by the way, is equipped with Gorilla Glass 4, while the "baby" S8 + is protected by Gorilla Glass 5. Both have an oleophobic coating, which means that the phones are protected from minor scratches, dust and do not glare in the sun. And at the same time, they are extremely easily soiled. It is better to immediately purchase a cover for a brand new gadget, otherwise you risk going crazy trying to get rid of the instantly appearing and ubiquitous fingerprints on the case.
The phone is very pleasant to hold in your hand, but it gets dirty at the speed of light
Design
The materials of the S8 / S8 + are not much different from their predecessors, but the design has undergone dramatic changes. Now the working screen occupies almost the entire surface of the front panel - as much as 84% of its area. The speaker, retina scanner, proximity sensor, front camera and light sensor remained in place. Do you understand what this means? No mechanical home button and the famous Samsung logo above the display. The Home button, as well as the Touch Return and Launched Apps, are now part of the screen. These “managers” have retained their functions. The virtual Home key is located in its usual place and is always available to the user. It feels like pressing it exactly conveys pressing to the previous physical version - you can feel a kind of click both when you hold down the key and when you release it. If you press on this sensor with great force, it will vibrate and instantly bring you to the main screen. For those who are worried about the accessibility of the key during the operation of various full-screen programs, for example, games, let's clarify - Home is always available.
The fingerprint scanner had to be moved to the back panel, because there was simply no room in the front
On the back, along with the camera and flash, the developers have placed a fingerprint scanner. Not all users were satisfied with this decision, however, you must agree, the creators simply did not have any alternatives.
Sizes and colors
The dimensions of the Samsung Galaxy S8 are 148.9 x 68.1 mm, and the height is 8 mm, while the weight is 152 g. The Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus is slightly larger than its counterpart: length and height - 159.5 x 73.4 mm, thickness - 8.1mm and weight 173g.
The dimensions of the phones, in general, do not feel too capacious and uncomfortable. The devices fit perfectly in the hand. True, small flaws are found when trying to reach the S8 + fingerprint scanner. While in the S8 the sensor button can be found without much difficulty, in the plus model it becomes a significant task. The rest of the ergonomics of the devices shows itself well.
Despite their rather large size, both phones fit perfectly in the hand. But trying to reach the opposite upper corner is in vain
The phones have five colors, but only three are available for Russia: yellow topaz (gold), black diamond and mystical amethyst (silver).
Screen
The screen is the most remarkable part of the phone, as it takes up almost all the space on the front panel. The diagonal size for the regular version is 5.8 inches with a pixel density of 570 ppi, for the plus model - 6.2 with a density of 529 ppi. The screen resolution is 2960 x 1440 pixels, i.e. Quad HD +. The screen, of course, has curved edges, just like the Galaxy S7 / S7 Edge. However, this time the developers tried to make the display “limitless” and they really succeeded.
The side bezels in the front of the screen have disappeared, and the top edges on either side of the display are extremely narrow, creating an unusual feeling of being immersed in the image. In addition to this, the slightly elongated proportions of the screen add originality to the phone. It uses a ratio of 18.5: 9 instead of the usual 16: 9. This innovation, surprisingly, does not cause any discomfort. Quite the opposite. Now the screen can accommodate much more information, which is certainly convenient. And such an unusual display of the picture only adds to the uniqueness.
Both versions of the phone use the same type of SuperAMOLED screen. If you have already used mid-range and high-end Samsung phones, then you know about all the advantages of this type of screen. You still have various detailed settings at your disposal - color mode, calibration, blue filter, contrast, brightness, and more. The screen performs well both indoors and on a brightly lit street. Among other things, in the screen settings, you can set the desired resolution and the list of applications that will be used in full screen mode.
Photo gallery: smartphone display testing
The intelligent assistant still needs some work - at least in the Russian version
Biometric phone protection
Face recognition and an iris scanner have been added to the available data protection tools. In the first case, you need to take into account many different nuances. In good light, the sensor works perfectly and without failures. But if the light is dim or practically nonexistent, do not be surprised if your own phone suddenly does not recognize you. Also, recognition may not work if, for example, you are trying to unlock your phone while lying down, or your current view is somehow different from the one that was originally captured. In addition, many people note that it is easy to trick the scanner by simply showing it the owner's photo. In the second case, recognition takes a little longer, but this tool is much more reliable.
The retina scanner can go awry if you wear sunglasses. The rest - including regular glasses - is not a hindrance to him
AKG headset
Samsung acquired Harman last year. The developer is renowned for having previously worked on a variety of audio products for brands such as Harman Kardon and Bowers & Wilkins. This time, Harman is co-creating with Samsung. The result of their work was in-ear headphones with a remote control, invented and released specifically for the S8 and S8 +. We must pay tribute, the sound in them is really good. However, this is only at midrange. Avid connoisseurs of good sound will clearly notice that the bass in these headphones does not differ in power, there is no immersion effect or depth of sound either. And the volume of the AKG headset is very low. Maybe it's the phones themselves, you ask. But no. If you replace the bundled headset with any other more or less high-quality headphones, then the sound improves significantly. "Space" novelties give out just a gorgeous scale of sound waves, but AKG is definitely not suitable for its disclosure.
Camera capabilities
Both phones inherited the camera from their top-end ancestor, the Galaxy S7. The main lens has a resolution of 12 megapixels, while the aperture is f / 1.7. The front camera is slightly worse - only 8 megapixels with an aperture value of the same f / 1.7. The focus length is 26 mm, optical stabilization is available. In terms of technical strength, the camera is really no different from its predecessor. So what's the innovation?
And the fact that Samsung has focused on the software part of its cameras. Improved low-light performance. The developers turned to Dual Pixel technology, due to which autofocus accelerated, as well as continuous shooting.
Daytime shooting (+ sample photos)
During daytime shooting, there are no complaints about the camera. The pictures come out clear, as detailed as possible, without blurring, even if the subject was in motion. The picture itself is saturated, sometimes even too much, but these are already the features of all Samsung mobile equipment. The white balance is adjusted perfectly, the color scheme pleases with its maximum believability.
The phone adjusts the white balance very sensitively, practically without mistakes. There are no complaints about macro photography
Among other modes, the Samsung Galaxy S8 / S8 + has the ability to manually adjust the focus.You can independently choose which plan your phone should focus on
By the way, you can shoot in two modes - auto and manual. Manual mode allows you to customize exposure, shutter speed, ISO, white balance. In addition, the S8 / S8 + offers several preset modes to choose from. However, even without them, the camera behaves quite well.
Shooting in low light (photo)
We are already accustomed to the fact that in low light conditions, when twilight begins to thicken on the street or you enter the room with your device, the quality of the shooting deteriorates sharply, the picture acquires a lot of noise, blurriness appears and saturation disappears. This is not the case with the Galaxy S8 / S8 +. The phone shoots well even in dim light.
The picture was taken during the onset of the evening - there is no noise, and the detail is as high as during daytime shooting As you can see for yourself, the camera on the new Samsung Galaxy S8 / S8 + is not inferior, but even surpasses some DSLRs
Front-camera
8 megapixels allow the front camera to take pictures of the same quality as the main lens. It supports autofocus mode and auto facial. The camera does not have its own flash, but the screen backlight is a good substitute for it.
Even in dim light, the sculpture's selfie came out detailed and rich.
Video
The maximum available resolution in which the S8 / S8 + can shoot is 4K, i.e. 3840 x 2160 pixels, the frame rate reaches 30fps. At a lower FullHD resolution, the frame rate is increased to 60 fps. Optical stabilization is available for video shooting, which instantly aligns the frame. The phones give an excellent picture - a decent level of saturation, brightness and detail even in the dark. Sound recording is also of high quality - there are no incomprehensible interference and noise, the audio track is clear and loud.
The South Korean developer realized in time that pixels are not at all the point and “more” does not mean “better”. The camera on the S8 / S8 + is not superior in strength to the camera of the same S7, but the difference in the quality of shooting is noticeable.
Photos in the interior
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Specifications
- Android 7, Samsung Experience 8.1
- Display S8 - 5.8 "(146.5mm) Quad HD + (2960x1440), 570 ppi, auto dimming, SuperAMOLED, adaptive color and brightness control, color correction, Corning Gorilla Glass 5
- S8 + display - 6.2 ”(158.1 mm) Quad HD + (2960x1440), 529 ppi, auto dimming, SuperAMOLED, adaptive color and brightness control, color correction, Corning Gorilla Glass 5
- Exynos 8895 chipset, 8 cores (4 cores up to 2.35 GHz, 4 cores up to 1.9 GHz), 64 bit, 10 nm, models available in some markets with Snapdragon 835
- 4 GB of RAM (LPDDR4), 64 GB of internal (UFS 2.1), memory cards up to 256 GB, combo slot
- nanoSIM, up to two cards, one radio module
- Battery Li-Ion 3000mAh (S8), 3500mAh (S8 +), built-in WPC / PMA wireless charging, fast charge in 75 minutes to 100 percent
- Front camera, 8 megapixels, autofocus, f / 1.7
- Main camera, 12 megapixels, DualPixel, f / 1.7, OIS, LED flash, 4K video recording, multiframe
- Samsung Pay (NFC, MST)
- Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac (2.4 / 5GHz), VHT80 MU-MIMO, 1024QAM, Bluetooth® v 5.0 (LE up to 2Mbps), ANT +, USB Type-C, NFC
- GPS, GLONASS, Galileo
- Fingerprint sensor (on the back)
- Iris scanner, face scanner
- Accelerometer, Barometer, Gyroscope, Geomagnetic Sensor, Hall Sensor, Heart Rate Sensor, Proximity Sensor, RGB Light Sensor, Pressure Sensor
- Two simultaneous connections of Bluetooth devices, the ability to simultaneously listen to sound from different programs on different accessories
- LTE cat.16 (depends on operator support)
- IP68 water resistant
- Dimensions: S8 - 148.9x68.1x8 mm, weight 152 grams; S8 + - 159.5x73.4x8.1 mm, weight 173 grams
Contents of delivery
- Smartphone
- Fast charger with USB Type C cable
- A clip to remove the SIM card tray
- AKG Wired Stereo Headset
- OTG adapter for connecting external devices
- USB Type C to microUSB adapter
- Instructions
Positioning
Since the Galaxy S4, the most successful Galaxy smartphones have turned out to be the S7 / S7 EDGE, and in this they were unwittingly helped by the situation with the Note 7, which was removed from the market. At the end of 2016, instead of Note 7, all advertising campaigns were focused on the "old" S7 / S7 EDGE, and suddenly it turned out that their potential is far from being exhausted. Moreover, these devices are selling well today, while practically all over the world S7 EDGE is sold better, the ratio to the regular, flat version is 2 to 1. In 2017, the S7 / S7 EDGE will become the most massive devices in the entire history of the Galaxy line. will most likely happen in the third or fourth quarters. What does this mean for the S8 | S8 +? And this means a simple thing that the new flagships will need to be diluted with the previous generation, and this will be achieved primarily at the expense of the price. If in 2016 the difference in cost between the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S7 was typical, then in 2017 the S7 and S8 will differ much more noticeably. Samsung's pricing strategy is changing, formally S8 + takes the place of Note 7, and regular S8 stands up as S7 EDGE a year ago.
Samsung believes this positioning is justified, since there is no goal of achieving maximum sales for S8 | S8 + in the first two quarters, these devices will be in a small shortage (which does not mean that there will not be an opportunity to buy them calmly, just the demand will be high on the part of operators and distributors, there will be a fight for them, but it has already begun). All this suggests that the officially delivered devices will not fall in price quickly, however, the Russian consumer was convinced of this by the example of S7 / S7 EDGE, that they remained at the same price level for an unusually long time, and fell in price only along with the change in the ruble exchange rate.
In terms of the market, Samsung hasn't changed the positioning of its flagships in any way, these are the most technologically advanced devices that can be found. Maximum opportunities for maximum value. It should be noted that the eights are built on a completely new chassis, it was developed from scratch and takes into account all the latest developments of the company. Now most of the models will come out on this chassis, but the next bright device on it will be the Note 8, other models will receive only a part of the functions that are in the S8 | S8 +.
The emphasis in promoting these models is largely placed on design; it is emphasized more than the stuffing of devices and their capabilities. For a part of the potential audience, this is important and looks justified. Let's see together what kind of flagship Samsung has got.
Design, dimensions, controls
The first thing that catches your eye is the absence of Samsung's inscription on the front panel, there was simply no room for it. For those who were very worried that such an inscription exists, now there is freedom, the device does not have any identification marks on the front. On the other hand, not a single model on the market resembles it externally, which already makes it stand out.
Since the stake in the eighth generation is made on the screen, which occupies most of the surface of the devices, we see only it, as well as small inserts at the top and bottom. The top insert contains the front camera, speaker, retina scanner, light sensor and RGB color sensor. The bottom insert is empty, there are no controls in it, in particular, there is no fingerprint sensor, it was moved to the rear surface, placed next to the camera. In fact, the bottom insert was created for symmetry with the top one, but nothing was placed in it, and what can be inserted here?
The curvature of the screen resembles that of the Note 7, it is small, but the devices fit into the hand like a glove. S8 dimensions - 148.9x68.1x8 mm, weight - 152 grams, S8 + - 159.5x73.4x8.1 mm, weight - 173 grams. The usual S8 does not feel large, it is more typical for models with 5-inch screens, slightly elongated compared to their height. With the S8 +, the situation is about the same, but it is similar to models with 5.5-inch screens, for example, the dimensions of the iPhone 7 Plus - 158.2x77.9x7.3 mm, as you can see, they are very close. Since my main phone is S7 EDGE, I compared the new device with it, they are very similar in size.
I liked using the S8 + without a case, it becomes too bulky, uncomfortable, and loses its ease of use. And just without a cover or with a silicone cover that fits snugly around the body, you will get a device that is compact for such a screen. The phone does not slip out of hands, it is balanced, you can work with one hand in the main applications, for example, dial a number, it is not difficult, plus you can change the interface for one-handed control, then all the keys are reduced and will be available. It is impossible to reach the upper edge in the S8 + with one hand, you don't even need to try, you will drop the device. But the need for this never arises, including on devices with a smaller diagonal, most of the operations on the screen, for example, during the game, we carry out with the fingers of two hands.
The absence of a mechanical key does not at all mean that there is no button as such, it is on the screen, and in the settings you can specify that it burns in AlwaysOn Display mode, or turn it off altogether. The beauty of this touch key is that it has a special pressure sensor located under the screen. Press the button with your finger and it works, albeit with a slight delay. In the same iPhone, pressing the touch button and the vibration response are configured differently, it seems that everything happens instantly, here the manufacturer should work on this point. On the other hand, there is no need for a central button in standby mode, since the easiest way is to set up the device unlocking by face recognition. Since the keys are touch-sensitive, they can be swapped, the Back button can be either to the left or to the right of the central key.
I was worried about the location of the button on the back of the camera in absentia. Having tried it, I can say that on the S8, this arrangement is plus or minus comfortable, the finger finds the sensor (this is a sensor pad with bumpers), but on the S8 + it is difficult to reach it, it turns into flour in the case. Another thing is that you can set up face recognition (do not confuse it with an iris scanner!), Then the smartphone will unlock automatically when it sees you. As usual, I have some news, I'll start with a good one. Recognition works perfectly almost always in bright rooms, the quality depends on the initial setting. Unfortunately, you can only customize one face image. Why "Unfortunately? The answer lies in the fact that, for example, when you, swollen from sleep, try to look horizontally at the phone screen, it does not work out very well, it does not recognize its owner in you. Another problem is the dark time of day, here recognition does not always happen instantly, but even in a cap or other headdress, the phone recognizes you.
In most cases, recognition occurs instantly, although, comparing with a fingerprint sensor, I must say that it is safer and always works the same way, at the same speed. Here, the unlocking speed may differ, which is noticeable, but it is always up to one second. Absolutists will be upset because they would like to get the same speed always and everywhere.
The first thing many people will try is trying to trick the face scanner. If you substitute a photograph for his face, he might work. Is this a security issue? Yes and no. For ordinary people, imagining that someone breaks into a phone, substituting your face in a photo is akin to believing that someone made your fingerprints, this is also not difficult to do today. I don't think anyone will bother with this. For those who care about their safety, I can advise you to turn on the iris scanner, then recognition will take a little longer, but the level of protection will increase (it works in complete darkness, for people wearing glasses, recognition takes a little longer). As usual, it is a matter of choice and possibilities, a face scanner for most will be quite sufficient in everyday life.
The S8 | S8 + has several color solutions (let's not repeat both model numbers for simplicity, since they are the same, I will say S8, meaning both phones), new colors have appeared. Will all colors be available in all markets? I think not, some colors in Russia will not be initially available.
Which color should you choose? I like ordinary black, it looks very nice in life, however, light colors are also good, they play in the sun. The fact that they used Corning Gorilla Glass 5 glass panels can be written down in the advantages of the device. One of the complaints about the big screen and reasons for absentee complaints was that, in the opinion of the mass unconscious, such phones would be easily broken. This is not the case, as proven by the same S7 / S7 EDGE and previous models that survive belt-height falls. It is clear that everything depends on your luck, but all other things being equal, these devices behave better than the same iPhone, which is distinguished by increased fragility of glass upon impact.
Just like in previous devices, a 3.5 mm jack is retained here, but the main connector is USB Type C. Among other features, I would like to note the IP68 water resistance. The SIM card slot is combo, meaning you get either two SIM cards or one SIM card and a microSD memory card. The SIM card format is nanoSIM.
The device has two microphones, they are located at the ends, the noise cancellation system works perfectly, on a noisy street in the rain the interlocutor heard me well.
On the back surface we see the camera, it protrudes from the body, but now the bezel does not protrude so much, this is a noticeable difference. To the left of the camera is the heart rate sensor, it has not disappeared anywhere.
On the front, above the screen, you can see an 8MP camera, as well as a 3.7MP IRIS scanner and IR illumination to illuminate the face. The resolution of the IRIS scanner has grown, as well as the accuracy, recognition speed compared to Note 7. There is also a light sensor (aka RGB color sensor).
On the right side surface there is an on / off key, on the left side there is a paired volume control key, and just below there is a separate button for launching the Bixbi assistant, we will talk about it separately.
The metal chassis of the device is made of 7000 series aluminum, unlike the sevens, it has a glossy finish, and it is not clear how it will behave after a while. This moment confuses me, in the future I will try to simulate wear and tear in order to see what happens and what scratches the case will receive.
There is only one loudspeaker in the device, at the bottom end, it is loud and clear, it is well heard in all situations.
In summary, I want to say the following - from the point of view of design, materials used, this is a flagship without any discounts, and it does not have many direct competitors, more precisely, it is one - the iPhone 8, which will appear in the fall, the current generation of iPhone is in many ways inferior and looks weaker ...
Display
Samsung has coined a marketing term for new, vertically elongated screens - Infinity Display, or infinite screen. It does not occupy the entire front surface at all, but the feeling from the first use and then is such that you are transplanted from a small TV in the kitchen to a large, comfortable panel. Considering that the size of the devices has practically not changed, the larger size of the screens really hits the mind. At QHD + resolution (2960x1440 pixels, 570/529 ppi) the screens are of high quality, there are no individual dots or other roughness. These are SuperAMOLED matrices of the latest generation, the technology has been improved compared to the Note 7, it has become even more advanced. The algorithm for adjusting the brightness depending on the ambient lighting conditions has changed, the AlwaysOn Display operating mode has expanded - the devices have become even a little better in this aspect. On-screen buttons are hidden in applications, you almost never need them. The younger device has a diagonal of 5.8 inches, the older one - 6.2 inches.
For the S8 | S8 +, they used technologies that were first used in the company's TVs. In addition to the fact that the phone analyzes the picture on the screen, not just a light indicator has been added, but an RGB color indicator that adjusts the picture to the external conditions. The devices also support the Mobile HDR Premium standard, which appeared only at the beginning of this year for 4K devices.
DisplayMate analyzed the screen in the S8 and once again felt that Samsung engineers had done the impossible, this is the most technologically advanced screen in a mobile phone. The full study can be found at the link, below are the highlights:
- In automatic mode, the maximum screen brightness is up to 1000 nits, it is readable in any sun;
- The color gamut DCI-P3 Color is applied, it is also used in 4K TVs (in the DCI-P3 test tests, coverage is 113%, which means displaying bright, colorful and realistic colors under any lighting conditions);
- The function of improving the picture on the screen, which turns content that did not have an HDR component into an HDR picture;
- Two light sensors - both on the front and on the back of the phone, for better detection of lighting conditions and correction of colors on the screen;
- Night mode with a blue filter, which allows you not to excite the psyche, improve sleep;
- Separate chip to control AlwaysOn screen, which allows you to get lower power consumption;
- Improved automatic screen adjustment to personal preferences, your smartphone learns from examples of how you like to watch movies, web pages, what are your addictions in games.
This is only half of the features detailed in DisplayMate's test, and the screen is outstanding. As much as I liked the screen in the S7 EDGE, it dimmed so much next to the S8, just see how the white display differs in the menu.
On the S7 EDGE, the white color turns yellow, but you can only see this in a direct comparison. In life, it seems that sevens, like other smartphones, do not have any problems with displaying colors. But this is exactly until you compare them with eights, they have gorgeous screens by any measure.
The geometry of the screen is 18.5 to 9, which is unusual and raises questions about how the interface has changed. An additional row of icons has been added to the regular menu. Is it convenient? Certainly, as more useful information is placed on the screen.
When watching videos on YouTube, the picture adjusts to the screen, you can stretch it to fill the entire screen, or leaving insignificant stripes on the sides, there is no distortion of the picture.
There are no modes of operation in which screen space is wasted, the large screen is comfortable for viewing maps, films and any visual information. It's a big screen, and it's silly to deny its benefits.
In AlwaysOn Display mode, a clock or a picture can be displayed on the screen, notifications from applications, there are no special changes compared to previous models, this mode works well. Competitors have nothing like this yet.
And the last cherry on the cake, since the phone's chassis has been completely redesigned, the screen has been integrated more deeply with other components of the device (for example, this is a separate chip for controlling the AlwaysOn Display), as a result, power consumption has decreased. Look at how many mAh battery the screen has consumed, this is a record.
As well as in sevens, it is possible to change the screen resolution, the default is FHD +, but the difference with QHD + in everyday tasks is not striking. I advise you to put QHD + for games or VR glasses.
In the sun, in any conditions, the screen remains readable, if there is an automatic brightness control, then you are guaranteed to see a colorful picture, the colors remain unchanged. In glasses, everything also works with a bang, you see a bright picture.
Battery
The built-in battery has a capacity of 3500 mAh, there is wireless charging built into the body, fast charging. Everything is typical for the company's flagships, I would like to note the new power saving modes, in some ways they are more aggressive, which translates into a slightly longer operating time. For example, video playback time is about 18-19 hours at maximum brightness. On average, the machines will last one to two days, depending on your settings and what you use. There is no particular breakthrough, but certain improvements are being observed.
In my case, the S8 + worked an average of one and a half days with 4 hours of screen operation (backlight 60%, automatic brightness), a heavy data transfer load and also ran various tests that heavily load the processor and consume energy.
In normal mode, 5-8 hours of screen operation are easily achievable with two days of operation.
Chipset, memory, performance
RAM 4 GB (in Chinese version 6 GB), built-in memory 64 GB, and memory cards are supported up to 256 GB. For the American market, the devices come with Snapdragon 835, to some extent this is an exclusive Samsung, competitors on this chipset will appear later. All over the world S8 is coming to Exynos 8895, it is one of the fastest processors. In synthetic tests, it produces high numbers.
Synthetic tests do not show how fast the device is, but I note that even in comparison with the S7 EDGE or Note 7, for which I have never had any complaints about the speed of work, the difference is noticeable, there is no gap between pressing and opening the application, the response is almost instantaneous. These devices are very, very fast. In balanced performance mode, the response is the same as on the current flagships, which is already excellent.
In terms of memory, we see a clear improvement in the form of the move from UFS 2.0 to UFS 2.1. There are already a number of models on the market based on UFS 2.1 (LG V20, Huawei Mate 9 Porsche Design), they show very high operating speed on Android 7. Which in reality reduces the boot time of the smartphone, as well as the time for switching between applications. In the Samsung lineup, it is the eights that become the first devices with UFS 2.1.
With great interest every year I read fairy tales about how Samsung flagships slow down in the interface, in everyday operations, unfortunately, they can hardly ever show me these problems in practice. This stereotype is tenacious, but has nothing to do with devices, rather a certain curvature of the hands of users who install a ton of left-handed software or remove "unnecessary" system components, and then begin to experience problems.
Communication capabilities
USB 3.0 (Type C) is supported, for the first time in a smartphone there is support for Bluetooth 5.0, there is aptX and other codecs for sound.
There is an LTE cat. 13/16 depending on the chipset supplier, but frequency aggregation will only be supported with software updates for specific countries and operators. In the LTE Advanced network, it shows the maximum speed from the theoretically possible (2x2 MU-MIMO). On the Moscow network MegaFon, the real speed that was obtained when downloading files was 430 Mbit / s (the theoretical limit is 450 Mbit / s). To demonstrate this speed, common tests are not suitable, they are simply not designed for such networks and fail (even the size of the test file is so small that it is impossible to load it properly in such programs).
From the point of view of wireless interfaces, there are improvements to Wi-Fi, new algorithms are used. As usual, Samsung has adapted everything that has emerged during this time. The WiFi repeater function has not disappeared anywhere, it is present in this device.
Of the features of the implementation of Bluetooth 5.0, I note the possibility of simultaneous connection of two headsets or other audio devices, that is, you can listen to the same music or watch a movie with another person. It's just a gorgeous feature that was definitely missing, although few will need it.
Another point that I liked was the ability to choose applications and in which connected Bluetooth devices the sound will be played. That is, you can choose that the sound from the video player is broadcast to an external speaker, and messages are read out only in the headset. Cool? Definitely yes, but you have to spend time to customize everything for yourself. Or such a scenario: you give your child a phone so that he watches a movie and the sound goes through a wireless speaker or wireless headphones, while you yourself listen to music or a podcast in other wireless headphones. This function works perfectly, and it is very convenient, I tried it in practice several times, I regret that it did not exist several years ago.
Cameras
The front camera has a resolution of 8 megapixels, as well as autofocus, it is fast (f / 1.7), which allows you to take good pictures, including in semi-dark rooms. As well as for the main camera, there are different effects when inserts from bows, mustaches and the like can be attached to the face. This is a nice feature that makes the use of the camera more varied.
The main camera at first glance remains the same, that is, it is 12 megapixels, DualPixel technology. The supplier of the camera module is, as before, Samsung itself, as well as Sony (S5K2L2 and IMX333).
Due to the increased performance of the system, the fact that the camera module received its own memory, a comfortable Burst Mode appeared, when you can take several dozen pictures in a row. The camera focuses on objects faster, it handles complex scenes better than the Galaxy S7 / S7 EDGE, as I was able to see in practice. But we cannot say that this is a fundamentally different camera, it is comparable in most situations with the previous generation, it works better in difficult conditions, but most of these differences will not be noticed, they are insignificant. However, take a look at the comparison of the pictures with the S7 EDGE, all of them were taken in automatic mode. But before that, here's what the camera interface looks like.
And now a comparison of pictures with Galaxy S7 EDGE.
| Galaxy S8 | Galaxy S7 EDGE |
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Take a look at the enlarged parts of the images from the S7 EDGE and S8 Plus to understand the difference in cameras.
The feeling that the pictures from the S7 are a little blurry, they are not so sharp. The explanation for this should be sought in the fact that the eights for the first time use the multiframe technology, which is familiar to us from the Google Pixel. The phone takes three frames, automatically selects the best one, and can also select the pieces of the frame that came out better in one of the pictures, and then glues it all into a single picture. The result is sharper and brighter than the S7 / S7 EDGE.
For a month, I have accumulated a lot of photos from the Galaxy S8 / S8 Plus, so let me show you some of them, for example, photos of flowers in the garden, as well as of all living creatures, macro photography, pay attention to the blurring of the background and the accuracy of details.
However, the camera does a good job with landscape shots as well.
In the dark, the camera works much better than the S7 EDGE, it works faster and performs scenes more correctly.
As for me, formally the camera on the S7 EDGE is the same, in fact the new image processing algorithms turned out to be more interesting and better, plus the yield of good photos is noticeably higher. The S8 / S8 Plus has one of the best mobile cameras on the market today.
There are no complaints about video recording, there is support for 4K, in FullHD you can choose a frequency of 60 or 30 frames per second.
And a few more videos from the last trip.
DeX desktop mode - similar to Microsoft's Continuum
For these devices, an accessory such as the DeX docking station appears, it has its own cooling, allows you to connect up to two USB-devices, for example, a keyboard and a mouse (USB 2.0). In some countries, this dock will be a gift along with pre-orders for the S8 | S8 +. Separately, it will cost 149 euros.
In addition to the fact that you get the opportunity to connect your phone via HDMI to an external monitor and control it using a mouse and keyboard, the DeX mode has appeared. This is not just broadcasting the contents of the phone screen to an external monitor, but a redesigned interface, in particular, support for MS Office, Adobe mobile applications, for example, Adobe Lightroom Mobile, has been added here. These applications have been completely redesigned for large screens, and so far this is only available for flagships from Samsung, but I am sure that later it will appear on a bunch of other devices from different manufacturers. The most direct analogy is a similar mode from Microsoft, which was on Windows Phone smartphones. But the death of the platform put an end to the Continuum, and the fallen banner was picked up by DeX, Microsoft engineers took part in its development, we can consider this as a kind of Continuum on Android.
First of all, this is a solution for corporate users, it is unlikely that it will be popular from the start, but this is an interesting direction for development. DeX has implemented support for remote access to your desktops, these are Citrix, VMware and Amazon Web Services, that is, nothing of our own and nothing new. Basically, you can already use these services on Android.
My impressions of DeX are mixed. On the one hand, this is definitely the future of mobile platforms, on the other hand, the current reincarnation clearly lacks the performance of phones, the windows are drawn slowly, they twitch, in a word, everything is not as beautiful as on paper.
Nevertheless, you already now get a full set of applications and all your data in a kind of desktop system, I think there will be technology lovers who will extol DeX, but the mainstream consumer will not rush to use it yet, everything works too slowly.
Bixby Assistant - Ideology and Practical Implementation
The idea behind Bixby is directly borrowed from Google Now, it is an assistant that combines voice functions, for example, voice recognition to perform commands (legacy of S Voice), but at the same time it analyzes what is displayed on your screen, that is, it conditionally understands the context in which you are talking about. With a separate key, you call up Bixby cards (again, an analogy with Google Now), you can edit them, add and remove applications and information from them. For example, the assistant knows that you usually call a certain number at this time, and offers to do so. It is impossible to call the current Bixby functions intelligent, at the presentation it was cut down to the point of impossibility, so, there is no voice input, it will appear only at the end of the month. And the prediction system is clearly stupid, to train it, you need millions of people to start using Bixby, in such systems it does not happen otherwise - the more they use it, the better they become.
The full version of Bixby with voice commands, prompts and more will be released only in December 2017, along with the update of the device to Android 8. At the moment, instead of Bixby, we have its camera with image recognition, as well as software for planning the day.
Multimedia capabilities, software features
Samsung has slightly redesigned the Clean UI, now it has become even more airy, it is perceived more simply, the designations of the three touch-sensitive keys have changed, the icons have changed, however, look at the picture. Also, now in the settings you can see the version of Samsung Experience, in this device it is 8.1.
In general, I like the way Android 7 looks on the Galaxy S7 / S7 EDGE, here the interface is slightly different, but very simple and straightforward, and most importantly, convenient. Although there is a whole cohort of people who, by default, do not like any add-ons over pure Android, and it seems to me nonsense - everything is done smartly and conveniently for everyday life. For example, to scroll through large lists, a button has appeared that allows you to jump to the very beginning of the list.
Another interesting point is that you can take any kind of screenshots, record small GIFs from the screen, cut out not just rectangles, but also ovals, and immediately draw whatever you want with your finger. But what I liked the most was saving the url when you take a screenshot in Chrome.
In terms of sound, we see about the same as in the Tab S3, there are improvements from AKG, plus AKG headphones are included. The Snapdragon 835 models have a regular sound, they use the Aqstic audio DSP, which is designed for this chip. It is noticeably better than the one used in the Snapdragon 820/821, but worse than the DSP from Cirrus Logic, which is used in the Exynos version of the smartphone (Cirrus Logic SC43130). I managed to listen to both versions of the smartphone with AKG headphones, on Exynos the volume margin is slightly higher, the sound seemed a little different. But the sound has definitely changed, it is very similar to how the HTC 10 plays, which has its own separate DSP (this is not a solution from Qualcomm, as the market thinks). The changes in sound quality are noticeable compared to the sevens.
Finally, a nice little thing, separately AKG headphones will cost about a hundred dollars / euro, these are top-end plugs. Having tried these headphones, I can say that the game is reaching a new level for flagships, I wonder what Apple will answer and whether they will change their standard earPods for the new iPhones. If they ignore it, it will be sad, since AKG tears them up in quality, like Tuzik a heating pad, these are just products from different price niches, and they differ very much.
The software contains a lot of "little things" that greatly diversify your user experience, many functions were on the previous devices, but it will not be superfluous to repeat briefly about the most noticeable of them. For example, it can be an emergency message (three presses on the power button), the phone sends an SOS message, also records a sound for 5 seconds and a photo from the front camera.
Comparison with Galaxy S7 / S7 EDGE
Samsung has prepared an infographic that shows the differences between the models, everything is simple and clear in it, and most importantly, clearly.
But you can also watch a separate video in which I describe in detail about these devices based on my rich experience.
Impressions
The device has no complaints about the sound quality and ring volume, the volume is above average, the melodies have been reworked, they have become more interesting, and they can be recognized in any situation. The vibration alert can be customized for yourself, which is important. The quality of the phone's work in Russian networks is good, there are some minor improvements compared to the sevens.
There are no questions with Samsung Pay, everything is exactly the same as in previous models.
Just as in the transition from S7 EDGE to Note 7, it was impossible to say that these are completely different devices technically, but in life they were perceived very differently, and here too - the eights turned out to be very worthy and interesting. In terms of the combination of characteristics and usability, I cannot name any device that would come close to them. As before, these are the main flagships on the market, devices from Apple are interesting from an image point of view, but technically they are still catching up, although they narrowed the gap in the seventh generation. Perhaps, there are two direct competitors on the market, these are Apple and Samsung, all other companies are catching up.
The S8 | S8 + has advantages over the seventh generation Apple and a small cart:
- Face scanner, iris scanner
- Screens with much larger diagonal and resolution in the same case size
- Fast battery charging, wireless charging
- Better sound, complete headphones a cut above, as created by AKG
- 64GB of internal storage plus memory cards - more than standard iPhone storage
- DeX mode, work on a large monitor (suddenly someone will like it)
- Support for VR glasses, which the iPhone does not have as a class
It can take a long time to list these "little things", but in fact they are very different, the product from Apple is much inferior not only technologically, but also in perception, which was not so noticeable before. With the advent of eights, the perception of phones is changing, they look a cut higher than their closest competitors.
On the Android market, there is only one company that managed to prepare its answer, but was in a hurry, of course, we are talking about the LG G6. This device is built on Snapdragon 821 (the chipset of the previous generation, not for the flagship), it has worse sound by default and worse headphones from the kit, it is rather awkward in the hand, it is not perceived as easily as the S8 | S8 +, but the main thing is that for it want about the same as for the younger model from Samsung. For what?
The cost of the S8 in Russia is 54,990 rubles, the older model costs 59,990 rubles. Considering that these prices are comparable to the current cost of the iPhone 7, which looks weaker in many aspects, and also exhibited at the level of the upcoming iPhone 8, which comes out in the fall, I see the price as adequate. Those who wish will be able to buy Galaxy S8 in May-June on the gray market, the price will differ by 10-15% downward (the younger model already costs about 42 thousand rubles with delivery from Germany). These smartphones belong to a new generation, and not only due to numbers, they are devices ideologically redesigned from scratch, they have a large number of advantages - a screen, operating time, performance, sound, security system and so on. But for those who consider them exactly the same as the S7 / S7 EDGE, the previous models will always remain, they have not lost their relevance, since they are much cheaper and have become more affordable. I am sure that in parallel they will be able to exist for a long time. For the market, the release of S8 | S8 + is a benchmark for the coming years, all companies will try to create similar solutions, including Apple. Another thing is that their opportunities for this are very limited, and the resulting "flagships" will resemble the story of the LG G6, one thing will be worse, then another, and the price will be comparable. In this aspect, LG G6 is interesting only as the closest model in time to the S8, the one that the company calls the flagship, and it has a roughly comparable approach that could not be fully implemented.
In S8 | S8 +, the fact that these devices are devilishly beautiful in appearance comes to the fore, although there are no comrades in taste and color, everyone has their own ideas about beauty. The success of these models has already taken place, during the pre-order in Russia, they were sold in a volume of more than 15,000 units worth a billion rubles. In the future, we can expect stable sales of eights, since they have high potential.
Of the childhood diseases S8 | S8 +, I will note the red screens, which is easy to check, just go to the settings menu, and the white color in them will turn red. The company may fix this with a software update, but I recommend checking the devices in the store to avoid the tedious exchange or return procedure. Moreover, it takes less than a minute, you just need to look at the screen. No other children's ailments have yet been identified in the models, for a month my devices have shown themselves from the best side.
Every year, when describing flagships from Samsung, I say standard phrases that they have become even a little faster, they have no direct competitors. And every year this is so, but with the release of S8 | S8 +, we can say that competitors, to put it mildly, are not just lagging behind, the gap between them and Samsung has just widened. Try these smartphones in life, spin in the store to see how good they are. I am sure that most will like them, and then the question of availability comes into play due to cost.
