Following suit from the Galaxy Note 4, Samsung has launched a standard version of its Galaxy S6 flagship and a curved version, dubbed the Galaxy S6 Edge.
The two phones are almost identical other than their screens, both packed with power, features and a premium build. So the big question is whether the Galaxy S6 Edge’s screen is genuinely useful and innovative, or whether it’s just a gimmick.
Read on for the answer, along with our first impressions of every other aspect of the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge.
Screen
You can’t talk about the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge without talking about that screen. Like the Galaxy S6 it has a 5.1-inch 1440 x 2560 QHD Super AMOLED display with a pixel density of 577 pixels per inch. It’s bright, sharp, vibrant and crystal clear, making for one of the best screens ever to grace a smartphone.
All of that applies to the Galaxy S6 as well, but unlike the Galaxy S6, the display on the Galaxy S6 Edge is curved at each edge. That means a few things. Firstly the main, non-curved section is actually slightly smaller than on the Galaxy S6.
It’s subjective whether that’s a good or bad thing but we’re inclined to say it’s good, as it makes it easier to reach the full expanse without having to adjust your grip.
And you’re not losing out on screen because the rest simply curves down the sides, where it’s used to display media controls and other quick controls and toggles as needed, meaning they’re always there when you need them but aren’t obstructing the main screen.
Another neat trick is that you can get it to flash up a colour when someone calls and you can assign different colours to five of your favourite contacts, so even if your phone is face down or across the room you can tell who’s calling just from the colour flooding out from the screen.
The other advantage of the S6 Edge’s curved display is that it’s truly an edge-to-edge screen with essentially no bezels, since you don’t hit a bezel till long after it’s curved down the side.
That makes for a good looking design and the sheer unusualness of a curved screen is eye catching as well. This is a phone which really stands out in a good way.
Design
The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge has a stunning design. It starts with that curved screen but it doesn’t end there, as it also has a metal frame and a glass back. Glass which catches the light and can look almost like a gemstone, especially if you opt for the green emerald handset.
It’s a great design and it looks slightly better than the standard Galaxy S6 overall thanks to being paired with a curved screen. It’s also very thin and quite light at just 7mm thick and 132g.
The design is arguably not quite as refined as the HTC One M9 or the iPhone 6, but again we come back to the curved screen and with that as well it will certainly prove more impressive.
One negative point against the design though is that it’s not water or dust resistant, which is a shame, especially as the Samsung Galaxy S5 is.
Power
There’s a 64-bit octa-core Samsung Exynos 7420 processor powering the Galaxy S6 Edge. It’s got four cores running at 2.1GHz and four at 1.5GHz, so it’s both fast and efficient, as it can switch to the slower cores when the faster ones aren’t needed.
Alongside that there’s 3GB of DDR4 RAM, which is faster than the DDR3 RAM used in most smartphones. So in other words this is a seriously powerful handset.
Camera
The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is packing a 16 megapixel snapper with optical image stabilisation, so not only should it be capable of taking sharp photos, but it can also lessen the effect of camera shake, which in turn helps in low-light situations where longer exposures are needed.
There are also a number of video shooting options, capping out at 2160p at 30fps, 1080p at 60fps or 720p at 120fps and it’s packed full of modes too, such as auto HDR and dual-recording.
Round the front there’s a 5 megapixel camera, which should be more than up to the task of taking sharp selfies, so all in all the Galaxy S6 Edge is a strong camera phone.
Features
The biggest feature of the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, other than its screen, is perhaps its fingerprint scanner. This isn’t a new thing as the Samsung Galaxy S5 also had one, but it’s been improved here, so rather than having to swipe to scan your finger you just place it on the home button, much like Apple’s Touch ID.
Samsung is also launching Samsung Pay, which allows you to make payments on your phone and contactless payments in stores, all using your fingerprint for authorisation.
Samsung has worked on its TouchWiz interface for this year’s flagship too. It’s still not the best Android overlay around, but it’s got a slightly flatter, more attractive design than past versions and much of the bloat has been stripped out. Plus the S6 Edge runs Android Lollipop, so it’s got all the enhancements Google’s packed in, including full 64-bit support.
Battery life, memory and connectivity
There’s a 2600 mAh battery in the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, which isn’t tiny but it’s on the small side for a flagship and smaller than the battery Samsung put in the Galaxy S5. It’s also not removable, which is another point against it.
But the S6 Edge should have an efficient processor which should help conserve battery life and it also supports both wireless charging and fast charging, which allows you to get four hours of use from a ten minute charge, so it shouldn’t be hard to keep it juiced up at least.
There’s a choice of 32, 64 or 128GB of storage built in to the Samsung Galaxy 6 Edge, so you should have plenty to play with, which is good because there’s no microSD card slot. That in itself is a bit of a surprise as Samsung has until now always put one in its flagships.
Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, 3G, 4G, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC and infrared, so the Galaxy S6 Edge is well set to get connected.
Early verdict
The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is looking set to be a niche product, just like the Galaxy Note Edge is, but that’s a shame because if anything it seems like a more impressive device than the standard Galaxy S6.
The specs are much the same throughout, but with a curved screen which both looks gorgeous and serves a genuine purpose this is truly a phone of the future.
Unfortunately it’s also likely to hold a price tag fit for the future, as while final pricing hasn’t been confirmed early murmurs point to a starting price of around £650, which is a lot of money for a phone and likely around £100 more than the Galaxy S6 will start at.
Is a curved screen worth all that extra? That’s a tougher call. But if you want Samsung’s best phone the Galaxy S6 Edge is probably it.
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge Specification
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Dimensions : 142.1 x 70.1 x 7mm Weight: 132g Screen size: 5.1” (1440 x 2560) Screen Resolution: 1440 x 2560 display resolution Pixels Per Inch (PPI) : 577 Processor: 2.1GHz octa-core application processor RAM: 3GB On-board Memory: 32, 64, 128GB Camera: 16MP (rear) 2160p@30fps, (5 megapixel front-facing) Operating system: Android 5.0.2 Ultrafast / 3G / 4G LTE: Yes/ Yes/ Yes Bluetooth / NFC : Yes/ Yes Battery capacity: 2600mAh Colours: White Pearl, Black Sapphire, Gold Platinum, Green Emerald Launch Date: April |
