A point to keep in mind is that the Samsung Galaxy S7 is almost a perfect smartphone. Sure there are some cons to purchasing it, but they are not as pronounced and amazing as the pros of the device. Samsung has listened to their friends and delivered a stellar flagship smartphone this year. There is absolutely no doubt that Samsung has made improvements to their premier smartphone line. Some of the features that were missing or lacking in the previous activation of the series were introduced again. Not only did they manage to make a beautiful looking device but also packaged in new features to make any Android fan drool. That being said, I may come off as a Samsung fanboy in the article but believe me that is not the case; Samsung has managed to impress me as well. And I was one of those people who were quite vocal about the Apple-like devices Samsung released last year. So without further talk, let’s check out the pros and cons of Samsung Galaxy S7.
Pros of Samsung Galaxy S7
There are a lot of pros of using the Samsung Galaxy S7. However this list will only be discussing the major improvements and features of the smartphone other than go deeper into the feature set. I highly recommend that you check out the best features of Samsung Galaxy S7 article to learn more about the smartphone and what it has to offer.
1. Build Quality
Samsung surprised us when they released a unibody smartphone last year. Honestly, I was not expecting anything like that. However, the design of the Samsung Galaxy S6 was a remarkable one. This year Samsung managed to improve that design further by reducing the ugly camera hump. The camera protrudes a little bit, but it is not as prominent as the one we had seen last year. The phone is made with premium materials and looks amazing from every angle. The rounded curves of the smartphone are made with a metallic frame. The back of the smartphone is made from glass and feels amazing to the touch. Samsung has gone to the rounded shape of the Samsung Galaxy S3 but with the added benefit of premium materials and beautiful colors. Another point to be noted here is that the smartphone is available in three different colors, and each of them looks amazing. There are no jarringly green or strikingly blue colors available on the Samsung Galaxy S7, and that is to be expected from a flagship smartphone.
2. The Screen
The Samsung Galaxy S7 features a 5.1-inch screen on the front. The screen is Super AMOLED in nature and looks insanely beautiful. I have used almost every display there is, from IPS to P-OLED and even TN panels I have covered everything but the beauty of a great AMOLED screen panel still impresses me. The contrast ratio of the screen and the way pixels are lit individually makes it a remarkable experience. Not to mention that the screen comes in a quad HD 1440 X 2560 resolution. This results in a stunningly high 577 PPI density. The screen looks absolutely sharp and bright under any circumstances. Even in direct sunlight, you’ll be able to use the screen with ease, a lot of the smartphone struggle in the same situation. The screen to body ratio of 72.1 percent is also quite impressive for a 5.1-inch display. Overall you won’t be disappointed by using this captivating screen.
3. Camera
Even though Samsung reduces the megapixel count on theSamsung Galaxy S7 to 12 MP from last year 16 MP, they have added a lot to the camera. For example, the F/1.7 aperture combined with the 26 MM focal length makes a good camera. The 1/2.6’’ sensor size is also quite impressive but not as amazing as the 1.4 µm pixel size. A larger pixel size of the smartphone allows more light to shine through and as a result, the low light photography is simply remarkable. I consider the Huawei Nexus 6P one of the best smartphone cameras available however this one even surpasses it in low light situations. Samsung has also made the slow motion abilities of the smartphone on par with those offered on the iPhones. The camera is able to capture 240 frames per second at HD resolution. Normal 4K footage looks amazing even if you’re moving, thanks to the optical image stabilization implemented into the smartphone. As optical image stabilization is a mechanical process, you will see no reduction of resolution in the photos you capture with your smartphone. But that’s not all, Samsung also introduced something called dual pixel autofocus, it basically uses all the pixels on the screen to focus on an object. As a result, the camera is able to focus as soon as you point it at an object. You have to really try out to believe it but it is almost as fast as your own eyes.
4. Waterproof
Last year when Samsung eliminated the removable back and the microSD card slot, a lot of people thought that smartphone might be waterproofed. However, that was not the case and it was a big disappointment because we were sacrificing a lot to gain a unibody design. A premium build doesn’t mean that we don’t like the freedom of Android devices. Actually, Samsung came to the senses and it has made the Samsung Galaxy S7 waterproof. The smartphone is now IP 68 certified and can withstand water over 1.5 m for 30 minutes. This is a marked improvement and clearly shows that Samsung is going to listen to the fans.
5. Expandable Storage
This year around Samsung also brought back the one feature that was sorely missed from last year’s versions; the microSD card slot. You’ll read in the cons that there are some issues we still have with the expandable storage but at least we have the option to expand it when we want to. The smartphone is able to accommodate a microSD card with up to 200 GB of storage space. This means all your 4K videos and high-resolution pictures can be saved only microSD cards without putting a dent on the internal storage.
Cons of Samsung Galaxy S7
There are not many things wrong with the Samsung Galaxy S7 and it is a remarkable feat. But there are some slightly minor problems with the smartphone that can be further improved by Samsung. Don’t get me wrong, they are in no way some glaringly big problems, they are simple irritations that should have been ironed out by the Korean giant. So let’s check out the cons I have nitpicked.
1. Finger Print Magnet
The back of the smartphone is made from glass and as glasses go, it is super prone to fingerprints. There are three models of the smartphone available, and only the white one can hide the fingerprints. Sure the black one can do well at night time but during the day, it looks really bad. I have actually seen the smartphone in action and truth to be told; I will slap a case or a skin on the smartphone. That brings us to another point; it will be a shame to cover up a smartphone that looks remarkably beautiful. However, you should invest in a good case and cover for Samsung Galaxy S7 so that you can save the phone from smudges. Alternatively, there are a lot of back protectors available for the smartphone, and they go for as low as five bucks, you should definitely get one of those.
2. Fragile
Even though the smartphone is made from Gorilla Glass 4, it is still prone to getting smashed. One of my friends has already broken his Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge and he is one of the most careful and responsible person I know. So it will be best that you invest in a good quality case for your smartphone otherwise, a single drop has the potential to either shatter the front or the back.
3. Front Camera
On the front, you will find a 5 MP camera that works well for the most part. However, the post-processing the Samsung Galaxy S7 does on the photos is somewhat harsh. Not a lot of people want to look plasticky in their photos and this is exactly what Samsung does in certain light conditions. Don’t get me wrong, is not an awful camera, but Samsung should at least give you the option to completely turn off the post processing. You can use of the best selfie apps for Android to avoid some of that dummy-like look, though, so it is not that big of a deal.
4. No Adaptable Storage
The Samsung Galaxy S7 seems come in only a 32 GB variant because I haven’t seen a 64 GB one anywhere on sale. Thankfully, this time around you can insert a microSD card and dump all your media on it. However, an important feature called Adaptable Storage is missing from the smartphone. This feature basically allows you to combine the internal and external storage sources and install apps on the microSD card slot with ease. But Samsung has not included it in the Samsung Galaxy S7 or Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. Maybe the company will enable this with a firmware update down the road but as of now there is no way to install apps on your smartphone’s microSD card. Of course you can use an app like Link2SD but we would have liked the option anyway.
5. USB Type C
While almost every flagship smartphone coming out these days have USB type C, Samsung is still stuck behind the old technology. Is certainly not a big problem because USB type C might be the future, it is not wildly adopted as of yet. However, we would have really appreciated that the company made the smartphone future proof.
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy S7 is a nearly perfect small sized smartphone. As you can read, the “cons” are not exactly cons. I was hard pressed to find something deal breaking bad about the smartphone. That being said, some people will most likely complain about the fact that the dual SIM version of the smartphone uses a single tray for either the additional SIM or a microSD card. What are your thoughts about the smartphone? Do share your opinions and thoughts with us in the comments.
