Samsung Galaxy The S6 is one of the most anticipated phones of this year, and we are the first in the Czech Republic and Slovakia to bring you a review of a phone that really deserves to go down in history as one of the most popular Samsungs on the market. The company, after a less successful 2014, decided to bet everything on one phone, which brings the latest, most powerful, most advanced and all this wrapped in a luxurious body, which got rid of the plastic cover and replaced it with tempered glass. And last but not least, there is the criticized one lower part, due to which many people say that the phone is copying the design iPhone 6.
Design
However, in reality, the design history is a little different. First of all, it is iPhone 6, which was inspired by the design of the HTC One and followed the trend of larger displays, which is behind Samsung. Design Galaxy The S6 is much different and catches your eye at first glance. The phone has an aluminum frame, but it is not perfectly rounded. Instead, it is like two halves that are connected. The side of the phone is very specific. Until now, either rounded or straight sides have been used, Samsung decided to combine them into a new shape, which I found interesting. In addition to enriching the design, it can also improve the grip of the phone. However, if you are not used to using large phones, then there is still a chance that the Galxay S6 may fall out of your hand while using it.
This could damage the Gorilla Glass 4 on the front and back. The edges of this slide are beveled and in the upper/bottom part they enter the aluminum chassis, which creates a little better protection of the slide. However, this does not apply to the sides that are exposed to risk. As for the properties of the glass used, we can state that it is very resistant to scratches. While u Galaxy During the first week of use, the S5 could already have smaller (in)visible scratches on the display, Galaxy Even after a week of use, the S6 is as clean as it was out of the box, and you won't find a single scratch on it. However, this may not apply to a camera that allegedly offers a lower quality glass.
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The back itself is very clean. You will find only a glass cover, under which the silver Samsung logo and faintly visible information about the serial number, IMEI or certificates are hidden. Our model then has an engraved inscription on the back "TRAINING UNIT". The text is visible in direct light. The main problem for the back of the phone will be cleaning, as fingerprints stick to the glass very quickly and after just a few minutes of use you will have to clean your phone with a cloth, t-shirt or whatever if you want it to be perfectly clean.
On the back of the phone we also find the LED flash and the heart rate sensor, which are now flush with the cover and to the left of them we see the camera for a change. It sticks out of the body of the mobile phone, which in my opinion is quite a problem, because during notifications, it will be this part of the mobile phone that will slide across the surface and make an unbearable sound. At the same time, you will notice the main interesting feature of the phone's design, namely that each model is "two-tone". The Sapphire Black model is black in low light conditions, but as soon as the conditions improve, you will find that it is dark blue and has the same color as the legendary Galaxy S3.
The back cover cannot be removed. As a result, the phone lost support for microSD cards, which you can't even add from the side of the phone. You can only add a SIM card on the side, which can hold a few contacts. For everything else, there is local storage with a capacity of 32, 64 or 128 GB. I think offering 32GB as a base is a great choice, as 16GB would be really low these days. Due to the fact that the phone has a unibody body, you can't even replace the battery in it anymore, which until last year was one of the main reasons to buy Galaxy. However, this is not the case this year and the battery is built-in.
Drums
How long does the battery actually last? Samsung Galaxy The S6 is much thinner than its predecessor and this has adversely affected the battery capacity. Today it has 2 mAh, while last year's model had a capacity of 550 mAh. How long will it last? With normal use, your phone can last until the evening, when you put it back on the charger. Samsung did say that Galaxy The S6 lasts just as long as the S5, but from my own experience we know that's not entirely true, and the fact that the battery is powering the most powerful mobile hardware and a QHD display is only indicative of that. In terms of screen time, the phone lasted 3 hours and 20 minutes of use. In doing so, we took a few photos, made several phone calls, used Facebook Messenger, listened to music via Google Play Music, uploaded content to Dropbox and surfed the Internet. But despite the low number, the phone was off the charger from 7:00 in the morning and we didn't put it back until 21:45 p.m. Charging then takes place twice and, as I mentioned in a separate article, charging with a cable takes an hour and a half, while charging with a wireless pad takes 2,5 times longer. However, if I have to choose a more convenient way to charge, then I would choose wireless charging, even if it takes longer.
Hardware
As I mentioned above, Samsung Galaxy The S6 offers the latest, greatest and fastest it can. It has a 64-bit Exynos 7420 Octa processor, 3 GB of LPDDR4 RAM and, finally, storage using UFS 2.0 technology, which makes it as fast as computer SSDs and at the same time as economical as classic mobile memory. Of course, all this is pleasing, but at the same time it has a negative effect on the battery life of the mobile phone. The hardware also has to take care of the 2560 x 1440 display, which is why it lags behind the iPhone 6 Plus in graphics benchmarks, which only offers a Full HD display.
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Display
The display itself has kept the same diagonal as Galaxy S5, but the resolution has increased, which has increased by a total of 1,6 million pixels. At the same time, the Samsung team brought an extremely high pixel density, 577 ppi, where you can't really distinguish individual pixels. According to some, an excessively high resolution is a waste, and yes, it is true that it has a negative impact on battery life. On the other hand, more pixels contribute to a higher color of the entire display and it must be stated that the display Galaxy The S6 offers really realistic colors and is bright enough. But it only applies when you are indoors, in the shade, dark, rain. As soon as you are in the sun, you will feel that the display is poorly readable and that is when image adaptation comes into play, when the display will increase its contrast, making it better readable. However, from my own experience, I feel that there could still be room for improvement. On the other hand, I think that the perfect readability of the display in the sun will be a matter of next year's S7 model. For now, however, the display will please in the mentioned conditions. I also have to remind you that when viewed from an angle, you can see a bluish tinge to the screen, similar to what happened with previous models. However, when you have the phone right in front of you, the image looks great on it – the photos you take and the videos you record look realistic on it.
Camera
The rear camera has not changed the resolution and we continue to have a 16-megapixel camera. Now, however, there have been improvements that increase the quality of the photos and when you zoom in on them, you will find that there are no longer strange oval shapes on the zoomed-in photos. Instead of them, the rear lens now has an aperture f/1.9, which he surpassed at the same time iPhone 6. To compare the quality of photos between iPhone and Galaxy we will look at it in a separate article that we are preparing. It can be seen that the photo was taken Galaxy The S6's are really of excellent quality and look good not only on the phone screen, but also on the computer screen. As for the color, the photos are not overexposed and the image corresponds to reality. In addition, it supports multiple resolutions that differ in aspect ratio. More precisely, it is about 16 MPX (16: 9), 12 MPX (4: 3), 8,9 MPX (1: 1), 8 MPX (4: 3), 6 MPX (16:9) to 2,4 MPX (16: 9).
The variety of resolutions is also reflected in the videos, where you can choose between 4K UHD, QHD (2560 x 1440), Full HD 60 fps, Full HD, 720p HD and VGA modes. The phone then brings several useful functions. First of all, it is the optical image stabilization that keeps the lens in place and ensures that the video does not shake. Furthermore, there is HDR support, thanks to which the camera should preserve realistic colors. The problem, however, is that it only works when recording video in Full HD and below. Another such advantage of recording videos is that you can take photos while recording the video, so you can have both if you need it. And finally, there's a tracking autofocus feature that tracks objects you've focused on before and keeps the focus on them. Also nice about the camera is the fact that you can still record fast and slow motion videos, but now it works by recording a video and choosing which parts you want to speed up/slow down and by how much. However, as I noticed after watching, 4K videos shot while walking look rather strange.
As for the front camera, it is also at a high level and supports a standard resolution of 5 megapixels with an aspect ratio of 4:3. The selfie camera, as we could call it, has the same aperture as the camera on the back and differs in lower resolution, as well as the absence of optical stabilization, which is not needed here. It also lacks flash. It will definitely please you that the front camera is capable of filming in four resolutions. Full HD is enabled by default, but you also have a higher resolution of QHD, i.e. 2560 x 1440 pixels. You can also set the photos to be saved horizontally flipped, which is an advantage since the photos are saved from your view and not from the phone's view. One of the features that you may use but don't actually use is that it allows you to take a selfie by holding out your palm and the phone takes a selfie in 2 seconds. However, you must keep your hand at a sufficient distance, ideally right next to your face, which you must not cover.
60,6-megapixel panorama shot with Galaxy S6. Click to view full photo (34 MB)
What can pleasantly surprise the user is the quality of photos taken in the dark using the Automatic mode. It's true, it doesn't compare to the photos you would take with an SLR, but it's nice that the camera doesn't cut at night and the photos finally look real. The problem is more with objects in the distance, which are still blurred here. However, you can see this in the photos below that we took in the past few days.
The camera environment has undergone a fundamental change, and while on the S5 you pushed the camera settings to the side, now you press the button in the upper left corner of the screen and a separate menu of options related to changing the resolution or, for example, optical stabilization, opens. Other features like flash, HDR and self-timer and auto enhancement are located next to this button. At the bottom of the screen, you then have the option to change the modes, which have received new circular icons and significant cleaning. The camera's professional mode will allow you to change the photo settings at the bottom of the screen, where you can change ISO, exposure, white balance, focus and color filters. And you can also freely use AutoFocus and AutoExposure separately.
Professional Mode
The professional camera mode clearly deserves a separate chapter in this review. As I mentioned before (and as you can see in the screenshot above), in mode you have a total of 5 aspects of the photo at the bottom of the screen that you can adjust. First of all, it's the exposure level, then there's the ISO level, white balance, focus and color filters that you can use to enrich your photo. In the upper part of the screen, you will then find the option to change the focus type, choosing between center-weighted metering, matrix metering or spot metering. The camera then has an ISO sensitivity of 100, 200, 400 and 800 or you can also set automatic ISO. The photos you can see below were mostly taken at ISO 100 or 200 settings, the Mannhatan apartments photo with ISO 400. The brightness was set to 0, although users have the option to adjust its level from -2.0 to 2.0. Finally, different types of white balance were used. You can choose from Daylight, Cloudy, Incandescent, Fluorescent, and finally Auto. We especially preferred the light bulb. Since the size of individual photos is 4-5 MB, you can view them in full resolution only after clicking.
TouchWiz
Yes, the environment was not only changed in the camera, but generally across the entire system. The interface has been optimized for Lollipop, cleaned of a lot of redundant functions and applications. In total, you will find only a few "additional" applications here, including, for example, S Health, which we will look at in a separate article, three applications from Microsoft (Skype, OneNote and OneDrive) and social services as a replacement for the canceled ChatON. More precisely, here you will find WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and, as a bonus, Facebook and Instagram. The effects have also undergone a big change. Instead of typical sound effects, we will encounter a "bubble" sound when unlocking the phone. And the SMS sounds were also changed. What pleased me the most about the sounds is the removal of that whistling sound like a text message that disgusted you on public transport because of people who probably have this sound set for every single reminder, so you constantly hear the same sound during the 20-minute drive. (FINALLY!)
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The environment is also very fast paced. It's smooth, applications load in a moment, and the icing on the cake is that you won't encounter any lags while using it. Fluency is equal iPhone 6 with system iOS 8.2, with which we compared it. The speed also applies when switching on. The S6 turns on after 17 seconds of pressing the Power Button. However, it should be taken into account that over time and as the memory fills up, the start-up of the mobile phone will take longer, but it will definitely not take 2 minutes. It is very likely that, in addition to the excellent optimization, the high performance of the device is also involved. On the other hand, you won't use it for practical use such as surfing the Internet or making phone calls. However, if you plan to use the mobile for gaming, then you will notice the capabilities of the hardware. You will also notice it at benchmark, where our editorial Galaxy The S6 posted a score of 69 points, the highest of any device in the table. At the same time, it is almost twice as much compared to Galaxy S5.
Fingerprint Sensor – Newer doesn't always mean better
You can unlock the phone with the fingerprint sensor, but my own experience with the sensor wasn't the best. Out of about 10 attempts, only about 4 were successful, the rest had to be unlocked with the password you set when setting up the sensor. Of course, it is expected that you will not forget this password. Personally, I therefore used an insecure lock screen the rest of the time. This did not fundamentally interfere - first of all, I found this unlocking to be faster and above all it is flawless. There is also an option to create a 4-digit PIN for unlocking or iconic connecting circles.
Speaker
After years, Samsung moved the speaker from the back of the phone to the bottom. This solution has the advantage, in particular, that the phone blows the sound into the room and not into the table, as it used to be. On the other hand, when watching a video or playing games, it is quite likely that you will cover the speaker with your palm, so the sound will be weaker. In terms of sound quality, we compared the speaker with the na iPhone 6. In terms of volume, I would say yes iPhone 6 is slightly louder, but at the same time has a worse sound. However, don't even try to listen to rock music, the guitars sound very tinny through the speaker on the phone. That's why we have headphones that hide Sennheiser headphones under the body. However, we will look at them in a separate article, where we will compare them with Apple EarPods. Mainly because of the similarity in design.
Summary
To sum up, Samsung has gone all-in. Either he uses everything and gets back on his feet or he sinks into the dust of time. The South Korean manufacturer decided on the first option and therefore brought a device that brings a luxurious design that competes with models like iPhone 6 or HTC One (M9). It combines a rounded aluminum frame with glass on the front and back, while this glass is embedded in the side frame in critical areas. What remains outside, however, is a protruding 16-megapixel camera with optical image stabilization. Because Samsung used a thin body and premium materials, the camera sticks out a bit more than in the past, which can be a hindrance. The quality of the photos pleases, it is much better than on the previous models and after zooming in on the photos you do not see strange oval shapes. This also applies to the front "selfie" camera. However, you will get the most pleasure from taking photos when using the professional mode, which allows you to take really amazing photos at night. You can also expect a drastically changed TouchWiz, which contains several old familiar elements, but at the same time it has been cleaned of a lot of redundant functions and this time it is well optimized, thanks to which the environment does not lag at all, even under high load. Finally, however, there is a problematic fingerprint sensor and somewhat weaker battery life. However, with normal use, the phone can last until the evening, when you put it back on the charger. For crisis cases, there is also Ultra Power Saving Mode, which deactivates many functions and simplifies the phone's environment.
- Samsung Galaxy The S6 goes on sale on April 17, 2015 at a starting price of €699 / CZK 19
- More details on availability Galaxy You can find the S6 in the Czech Republic here
- More details on availability Galaxy You can find S6 in SR here
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