We got hold of the two and tested it out.
Seems the curved edge-to-edge design in a glass and metal built is now a main characteristic for their flagships making their Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus a standout against their competition. Turning it on, you will be blown away by the proportion of the screen to body of the S8 and S8 Plus as they sport an Infinity Super AMOLED Display that delivers HDR quality visuals with minimal bezels. The Screen size is really good for entertainment, games as well as combination of sorts or to say multitasking. Samsung Galaxy S8 carries a 5.8 inch while S8+ has 6.2 inch. Oh we found that Default resolution is Full HD+ but can be changed to Quad HD+(WQHD+) in Settings.
The Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus blew us away in terms of smoothness and flawless execution of Android Nougat. This might be because it packs the newest 10nm 64bit Exynos 8895 Octa-Core Processor that is paired with Mali G71 GPU complimented with abundant UFS 2.1 64GB Storage and 4GB LPDDR4 Memory. Antutu Benchmarks for Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus reached 173K Levels rivaling that of iPhone 7 Plus.
Well if that does not impress you, then you might want to try out Samsung Dex that makes your smartphone a portable pc. You connect your S8 or S8 Plus then watch it come alive as a desktop-like interface on an external display. You can do productivity from Microsoft Office and run other Android Applications including more tabs on Chrome. Clearly, it shows that the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus is a computing powerhouse.
Well we were curious about Samsung New AI Bixby so we press the dedicated Bixby Button and tada you need to enter in your Samsung ID. Bummer, Though Samsung did a demonstration as it learns from what your likes, attitude and location. With the camera app, you can launch Bixby Vision which use the S8 or S8 Plus camera sorta scan things and Bixby gets information about it.
Moving to camera, equipped with a single Rear Camera at 12MP, f/1.7 aperture with Dual Pixel Technology and upon checking, it is a S5K2L2 made by Samsung which is an upgrade to what was used with S7 Edge. Front Camera is at 8MP also at f/1.7 with Samsung S5K3H1 Sensor. So far the new things for camera are the Bixby Vision, AR stickers and filters and thats about it.
Here are sample shots.
So far, the rear camera takes detailed pictures. Multi AF helps detects what object to focus on. Colors reproduction is on point. Minute details are clear with close up shots.
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| Focus Test |
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| Indoor | Color Sample |
Front Camera is Wide Angle and can fit group of people for selfie. Stickers is fun but resembles to that off what snapchat is offering.
With its wide camera aperture, lens flare can be seen especially for front camera when you are capturing lights or near light source. As for the rear camera, you could just see dots of light.
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| Lens Flare Rear | Front |
Tested the New Samsung UI. More of gesture base UI since you need to slide upward to draw out the app drawer. When you slide to the right, You will find Bixby which was Flipboard before. Few addition like Video Enhancer, Screen Modes, Screen Resolution, Screen Zoom and Font, Separate app sounds and Sound Quality and effects.
Oh navigating thru the device is done with on-screen navigation. Fingerprint has been relocated at the back for easy access. If you want to be more secure then Iris scanner and facial recognition should do the trick.
Comes with upgraded connectivity from WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS and NFC. Most lastest Gigabit LTE is now supported with its use of the new processor. May be dual sim but if you need more storage then give up the other sim for a microSD. USB OTG is supported.
Battery for S8 is at 3000mAH while S8 Plus is at 3500mAh. Quick Charge is supported for direct and wireless connection.
As for accessories, AKG Earphones will be provided for sweet sound experience for S8 and S8+ owners. Samsung also gave us a glimpse of the new Gear VR with Remote and Gear 360. Samsung DeX dock to get that desktop-like experience.
So far what excited me is that Infinity Display, Samsung DeX and Bixby. How about you Geeks?
Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ Pre-order starts on April 17 to April 29 via Samsung Concept Stores, Smart, Globe, Dealers, Resellers and Lazada Philippines. You do get a Free Bottle Design Samsung Wireless Speaker if you make the order. Samsung Galaxy S8 is priced for 39,990 while Galaxy S8 Plus retails for 45,990.
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| Samsung Lazada Page* |
*Product Pages of S8 and S8 Plus will go live on or before April 17...
So What you think? Will Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus the saving grace of Samsung?
Samsung Galaxy S8
Android Nougat 7.0
5.8 inch Super AMOLED WQuadHD+ (2960x1440 18.6:9) Infinity Display
Mobile HDR Certification
Gorilla Glass 5
Octa-Core Samsung Exynos 8895 Processor 10nm 64bit
MaliG71 GPU
4GB LPDDR4 RAM
64GB UFS 2.1 Internal Storage
Expandable via MicroSD up to 256GB
12MP Dual Pixel f/1.7 aperture
Samsung S5K2L2 1.4µm Sensor size: 1/2.55"
Smart OIS
8MP Smart AF f/1.7 aperture Front Camera
Samsung S5K3H1 1.22µm Sensor size: 1/3.6"
LTE Cat 16 / HSPA+ / 3G / 2G
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz)
VHT80 MU-MIMO, 1024QAM
Bluetooth v 5.0
GPS, aGPS, GLONASS, Galileo BeiDou,
NFC, ANT+,
USB-Type-C
USB-OTG, DisplayPort
Sensors:
Fingerprint Sensor
Face / Iris Scanner
Accelerometer, Barometer, Gyroscope,
Hall Sensor, Geomagnetic, Heart Rate,
RGB Light, Pressure
3000mAh Battery Non-removable
Fast Charging (Wired and Wireless)
Wireless Charging (WPC / Airfuel)
148.9mm x 68.1mm x 8mm
155g
Samsung Galaxy S8+
Android Nougat 7.0
6.2 inch Super AMOLED WQuadHD+ (2960x1440 18.6:9) Infinity Display
Mobile HDR Certification
Gorilla Glass 5
Octa-Core Samsung Exynos 8895 Processor 10nm 64bit
MaliG71 GPU
4GB LPDDR4 RAM
64GB UFS 2.1 Internal Storage
Expandable via MicroSD up to 256GB
12MP Dual Pixel f/1.7 aperture
Samsung S5K2L2 1.4µm Sensor size: 1/2.55"
Smart OIS
8MP Smart AF f/1.7 aperture Front Camera
Samsung S5K3H1 1.22µm Sensor size: 1/3.6"
LTE Cat 16 / HSPA+ / 3G / 2G
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz)
VHT80 MU-MIMO, 1024QAM
Bluetooth v 5.0
GPS, aGPS, GLONASS, Galileo BeiDou,
NFC, ANT+
USB-Type-C
USB-OTG, DisplayPort
Sensors:
Fingerprint Sensor
Face / Iris Scanner
Accelerometer, Barometer, Gyroscope,
Hall Sensor, Geomagnetic, Heart Rate,
RGB Light, Pressure
3500mAh Battery Non-removable
Fast Charging (Wired and Wireless)
Wireless Charging (WPC / Airfuel)
159.5mm x 73.4mm x 8.1mm
173g
